Strike a Pose
by nowyouseemenowyoudont
Summary: Sesshoumaru and Inuyasha find themselves out of a home and in debt, to a famous fashion designer who has her own ideas of how they can repay their debts to her.Nominated in theDokuga awards for best Sesshoumaru portrayal, best romance and best AU
1. Due to Certain Situations

Chapter one: Due to certain situations

The two half brothers looked up at the huge twenty story apartment complex and Sesshoumaru, the eldest, sighed heavily. He pushed a clawed hand through his long waist length silver hair and studied the building with his golden eyes. He was two years the elder and it showed in his height and control of his emotions.

His brother was treating their latest situation with less grace than his elder half brother. He was growling low in his throat and his fists were balled at his sides. His golden eyes were narrowed and his silver dog ears were twitching atop his head.

The women who walked past turned to gape at the stunningly good looking boys. It didn't matter that the two appeared to only be in their late teens; the point was that their combined gorgeousness had even women of over thirty drooling.

They both for once shared the same thought: this sucks.

"The letter said take the elevator to the penthouse" Sesshoumaru said in his usual soft yet cold voice that commanded attention.

"Yeah I know what it said" Inuyasha snapped jumping down Sesshoumaru's throat as per usual.

Sesshoumaru sighed "Your emotions will one day be your downfall Hanyou" he told him coldly "Follow me"

"I don't follow your orders" Inuyasha grumbled but followed after his half sibling anyway

They walked through the foyer and past the service desk where the guards surveyed the two handsome teenagers with mild interest.

"They must be going to see Megumi-san" Shippo remarked to his fellow guard

"They don't look like models to me" Genkotsu the older and more astute of the pair remarked "sure they're good looking and all but they look too angry"

Sesshoumaru rolled his eyes and hoisted his backpack onto his shoulder as the lift shut soundlessly around him and his half brother, the two guards gossiped like old women and it wasn't as if he couldn't hear them with his sensitive Inu Yokai hearing, even the baka Inu Hanyou could hear them.

The lift arrived at the penthouse quickly and the door slid open to reveal a lushly carpeted interior that led to a locked door. Sesshoumaru strode without preamble to the door and rapped loudly on it.

It swung open instantly and they looked inside to see a red walled foyer with a impressionist painting hanging on one of the walls, an old fashion coat stand and a small green and leafy plant. For a moment Sesshoumaru wondered where the person who had answered the door was and then he looked down.

Gazing up into his gold eyes were a pair of equally beautiful chocolate brown eyes that were currently in the possession of a small black haired female of the age of around ten. She blinked at him and frowned at the crescent moon on his forehead before glancing across at Inuyasha and his dog ears.

"Oba-san!" she called over her shoulder in a soft voice "there is a moon man and a dog boy here!"

With that she turned on her heel and skipped back into the penthouse leaving a stunned Inu Yokai and Hanyou in her wake.

"Moon man?" Sesshoumaru questioned in shock

"On your forehead" said a new voice and the two teenagers turned to see a woman in her mid thirties with short black close cropped hair approach them. She had light hazel eyes and a calming presence and she ran her eyes over the two boys like she was appraising cattle at a livestock sale.

"What?" Sesshoumaru asked coldly

"There is a crescent moon marking on your forehead, hence she called you moon man" she told him rolling her eyes "Sesshoumaru and Inuyasha I assume?"

"Yeah and?" Inuyasha asked "what the hell are we doing here lady?"

"My name is Megumi" she told him sighing at the rudeness

"The question still stands" Sesshoumaru said. He tired of his half brothers rudeness but he appreciated the need behind the question. The lawyer had simply dropped them outside the goddamn building with a scrap of paper.

Sesshoumaru was still trying to get over the fact that his family had rejected taking either him or his half brother in. He had yet to come to terms with the fact that this woman whom he had never met before seemed to now be looking after them.

"You are here because of your late father's debts" she said with a frostiness to rival Sesshoumaru "You would have been cast out into the world in debt and homeless if I hadn't decided to take you in"

"Did you pay off our debts?" Sesshoumaru was curious

"Hai" she said "you will be living here and working off the debt from now"

"What?" Inuyasha growled "we owe you nothing, it was Otosan's fault not ours"

"Shut up Hanyou" Sesshoumaru abruptly grasped how lucky they were and did not particularly want to be kicked out onto the streets.

Inuyasha took to grumbling under his breath as the woman led them into a huge open plan sitting room of which one wall was made entirely off glass and revealed an awe inspiring view of the city beneath it.

A small phone began to ring on a coffee table that was apparently made of driftwood and she picked it up.

"Mushi, mushi" she said into the receiver "Hai, I'll be right there" she hung the phone back into the cradle and looked at them apologetically "I have to leave, but my daughters will show you around"

"Daughters?" Inuyasha was curious despite of himself

"I have two daughters and an adopted daughter" she said smiling tenderly at the thought of her children "Kagome! Kikyo! Rin!"

She picked her coat off of the long red sofa and pulled her arms into the sleeves. "I'll be back soon" and the woman left.

"Did she just leave two teenage guys in the house with her daughters?" Inuyasha was incredulous

"Filthy thoughts depict a filthy mind" said a smooth silk like voice and they both turned to see a girl come down the stairs and into the living room. Apparently the penthouse was split into two huge levels.

The girl stepped forward without smiling and grabbed the cat that was laying along the back of the sofa before dropping the overweight tabby onto the floor. The girl was around Inuyasha's age with long black hair that was straight and perfect with a long equally black fringe that hung into her light hazel eyes. She was slim and slender and showed barely any signs of any womanly attributes, this seemed to compliment her ethereal quality. Her face was ivory skinned and her eyes had pale lilac lids, her cheek bones were cut high and haughty and her lashes were long and brushed against her cheeks when she blinked. She wore a black summer dress with black tights, against the back drop of her palest skin and coal coloured hair it made her look like she existed in black and white.

"Who are you?" Inuyasha asked and Sesshoumaru fought the urge to roll his eyes when he realised that the child was attracted to the girl.

"Kikyo" she stated coldly looking him over and then smiling almost imperceptibly. It was a fractional twitch of her slim lips.

"Ne, ne Kikyo-chan" came a happy and care free voice and they all turned again to the rather grand staircase to see another teenage girl of the same age as Kikyo descend the staircase.

She may have been the same age as Kikyo but she was the polar opposite of her. Whereas Kikyo was tall this new comer was short. Whereas Kikyo was straight up, straight down this girl had an hourglass figure that was accentuated by the red wrap around dress she was wearing that had a circular neckline that revealed her shoulders and some of her back and cleavage. It was fitted at her waspish waist before it tapered out at her knees to flow around them like burning water. Her skin had a slightly healthier glow to it that Kikyo's staunch white and cold be described as creamy. Like Kikyo her hair was long and passed her waist but in gentle silky waves, her eyes were wide and a fathomless blue with long lashes and the same haughty cheek bones as Kikyo. Her lips were plump and a walking advertisement for lip gloss.

"Oh" her eyes rounded as she set her eyes upon the two distinctly non human guests. Her gaze drifted from Inuyasha's dog ears, which she had to fight the urge to rub, to the smouldering golden eyed gaze of the taller Sesshoumaru.

Sesshoumaru had felt nothing upon setting eyes on Kikyo, but this girl was evoking emotions in him that he had up until now repressed. He was attracted to her.

**Nice. **His beast was approving as his gaze flickered over her body.

_How'd you get out?_ He asked the beast. It was usually trapped in the cage at the back of his mind, but had apparently freed itself

**Carnal desires bring forth the beast**.

_Leave me_

**How do you propose I do that?**

_Go back to your corner._

**I'll be back.**

"Can I help you?" the voice of the female snapped him out of his revere and he fixed her in his icy stare letting none of his attraction to her seep into his gaze.

"Hn" he said arrogantly tilting his chin

She put a hand on her hip "Don't 'hn' me" she said rolling her eyes "you were staring"

"So were you" he said coldly

"Kagome" Kikyo put a hand on this 'Kagome's' shoulder to calm her

"Who are they?" Kagome asked and then she snapped her fingers as something seemed to occur to her "Those guys that Okasan said would be living here?"

"Seems like" Kikyo said shrugging her delicate shoulders.

"I'm Inuyasha and he's Sesshoumaru" said Inuyasha smiling at them both.

"I'm Kagome and she's my twin Kikyo" Kagome shrugged "Do you want to see your room?"

"You mean that I have to share a room with the half breed?" Sesshoumaru intoned darkly, a killing aura seemed to be radiating out of every fibre of his being and the twins, unused to this backed off slightly.

Inuyasha growled "I don't particularly want to share a room with you either dear brother" he said in a pissed tone.

Kagome picked up a cushion from the red sofa and hit them both upside the head with it. "Quit complaining, it's the only room available unless you feel like sharing with us" she said

"I wouldn't mind sharing with someone other than the self proclaimed lord" Inuyasha said

"Hentai" Kikyo said coldly her brown eyes hard "like I would allow you to stay in the same room as me and my little sisters"

"Where are the rooms, girl?" Sesshoumaru asked Kagome

She hit him with the cushion again "I have a name moon man"

"So do I and it isn't moon man" he said coldly

"Ah, but you were dubbed that by my cute little Rin-chan" she said gesturing to the small female who had opened to door and was now standing on the stairs watching them with mild interest in her chocolate eyes.

He growled at the little girl who merely looked at him like he had broken her teddy bear; with tears in her huge eyes.

Kagome hit him with the cushion for a third time "Leave Rin alone"

He grabbed her wrists as she made to hit him with the pillow again and they both glared at each other.

"Desist at once" he told her

"Make me" she challenged tossing her hair

They glared at each other; fire in their eyes.

"Let's go" Kikyo said grabbing her twins other wrist "if Sesshoumaru dies then you have to clean up the mess after"

Kagome grinned and stuck her tongue out over her shoulder as her sister dragged her up the stairs.

_Insolent little girl_. Sesshoumaru was not amused but Inuyasha was having a hard time hiding his laughter from his sibling.

The two siblings followed the twins up the stair case. Kagome stopped half way stooped over and picked up Rin balancing her on her hip before continuing after Kikyo.

"This is your room" said Kagome throwing the door open.

The room was very large and white, one wall like the living room down stairs was made entirely of glass and had motorised blinds across it. The room was divided by a strange low slung yet long wooden cabinet and there was a king sized bed on either side of the cabinet. There was a computer in the room along with a flat screen television with a games console. Each bed had a wooden chest at the foot of it and each half of the room gloated a large white mirrored wardrobe.

Sesshoumaru chose the side of the room with the computer simply because he was the more studious and more intelligent of the pair and the computer would help him in that aspect. But as his brother celebrated over getting the half of the room with the games console he rolled his eyes; he should have known the idiot half breed would enjoy a games console.

"I guess you like it?" Kagome asked as Inuyasha proceeded to reveal his mental age by bouncing on the king sized bed. She put Rin on the floor and Rin walked up to Sesshoumaru. She stood around thirty centimetres away from him and stared at him.

Sesshoumaru had never been very good with small children and he didn't really get along that well with humans so he had no idea how to deal with the child called Rin. Her chocolate brown eyes fixed unwaveringly onto his golden ones.

"I wouldn't engage in a staring competition with Rin" said Kagome dryly "she doesn't blink"

"Ne, moon man" Rin piped up in her soft voice "why is your hair silver?"

"I am an Inu Yokai" he told her coolly

"So?"

"So my hair reflects the colour of my pelt when I transform" he told her

"You turn into a doggy?" she asked

"Hn" he said

"You're pure Yokai" Kagome said glancing at him

"And you're a Hanyou" said Kikyo gazing coolly at Inuyasha

"How would you know that?" asked Sesshoumaru

"Miko's" Kikyo said chucking a thumb in between herself and her sister

"I sense no aura" he said coldly narrowing his eyes at them and concentrating his energy. He sensed nothing coming from the two sisters.

"If you can sense our aura it means we're seriously pissed" Kagome said shrugging

A cell chirped and Kikyo pulled a small cell from her pocket and glanced at it.

"I've got to go, the shoot starts in thirty minutes and Naraku hates when I'm late" she told her twin

"How are you getting there?" asked Kagome whilst serrupticiously dragging Rin away from the Yokai who was cracking his claws in annoyance.

"Um..." she paused and then looked at her sister with doe eyes "maybe I could take Ocean Beauty?"

"Touch my bike I break your face" Kagome was emotionless which simply made the statement even more threatening.

"Why?"

"The last time you took her out I had to buy new fenders" she told her sister growling slightly. This made the two guys smirk; humans growling wasn't exactly scary to them.

"Fine, I'll take the car" she shrugged and disappeared out of the door

Kagome let go of Rin and chased her out of the door.

"Don't forget your bag!" she yelled after Kikyo

"Hai, _**Okasan**_!" she sniggered and the front door slammed after her

Kagome snarled under her breath and walked back into the room and grabbed Rin again. She was still staring at the steadily angrier Yokai.

"She probably shouldn't have left you in the house with two guys she doesn't even know" said Inuyasha frowning at how the women seemed not to grasp how screwed they were if either he or his brother let their beast loose.

"Bite me" she said seemingly reading his mind.

_**It would be my pleasure. **_Sesshoumaru's beast reared it's head as she departed from the room and he sighed. Looks like the younger girl would be testing his self control.

A/N: I do not own Inuyasha and I make no profit from this. Please Review and I'll post more chapters!


	2. Repayments

Chapter two: Repayments

Megumi sat on the low slung leather couch and watched the rest of her somewhat dysfunctional family.

Inuyasha was sat in the egg swivel chair; Rin was sat on the fluffy rug on her stomach. Sesshoumaru was sat on one side of the boat shaped couch whilst Kikyo was sat on the other side with Kagome in her lap. Kagome laughed as Sesshoumaru glared at her when her feet were placed into his lap. He grabbed her ankles and twisted them off his lap. A surprised Kagome twirled off her twins lap and landed on the same rug as Rin in an undignified heap.

"Moon man doesn't like me" she confided to Rin and then dived onto the sofa again. This time she sat on top of Sesshoumaru.

He tried to throw the young Miko from his lap and she dug her nails into his black jean clad legs.

The assembled group watched the two in amusement until Megumi intervened.

"Quit it you two" she said rolling her eyes

"So you wanted to talk to us?" Sesshoumaru asked whilst still serrupticiously trying to rid his lap of Kagome who was clinging to him like a cat on a high rise wall.

"I wanted to ask how you are going to begin to repay your debts" Megumi said smirking "and I think you should work for me"

"What?" Kikyo raised a perfectly manicured eyebrow

"I think they'll be very good at it" Megumi smiled

"Good at what?" Inuyasha was never known for his outstanding patience "are you speaking in code just to annoy me?"

"I am head of HG designs" said Megumi "my company makes clothes for all ages and is very specific, each piece of clothing is completely unique and will never have a duplicate. As such we get a lot of high end buyers who want our clothes, because no movie star wants to turn up in the same dress as someone else"

"How can we possibly help with clothes designing?" Sesshoumaru was perplexed and still trying to shove a stubborn Kagome off his lap, she was grinning kind of evilly and seemed to be enjoying the fight.

"You can't" Megumi was blunt "but you could help with the modelling"

"I refuse" Sesshoumaru said blankly

"No way" Inuyasha said in shock

"Can you use a sewing machine?" Megumi asked eyebrows raised.

Both heads shook in the negative.

"Can you sketch?"

Again both heads shook in the negative.

"Then you will become models" she stated

Sesshoumaru stood up angrily and Kagome rolled off his lap and fell in an ungainly heap on the floor for the second time that night.

"No" he growled, he was very serious

Megumi frowned up at him feeling a little uneasy at the very annoyed Yokai. "We make unusual clothes and our models are also unusually beautiful" she said "Kikyo and Rin also model"

"I'm a professional model" Kikyo nodded whilst Rin grinned from Kagome's lap on the floor, revealing the gap between her two front teeth.

"Kagome does designs and can sometimes be coerced into modelling and you two would be perfect for my new men's range" she said

"But Sesshoumaru doesn't smile" Inuyasha said, his furrowed brows revealed his perplexing thoughts "how do you take good photo's of someone who lost the ability to smile aged six?"

"He doesn't need to smile" said Kikyo calmly "he needs to look haughty and aloof"

They all looked at Sesshoumaru who glowered haughtily back at them.

Kagome and Rin dissolved into a giggling fit "He was born to be a model" Kagome managed to out before collapsing into giggles once more.

"Indeed" Sesshoumaru said scowling down at the girl before tossing his hair and walking from the lounge up the stairs. They heard the door to his room close.

"You pissed him off" Inuyasha told Kagome

"So?" her eyes twinkled mischievously "it's fun"

Kagome, Kikyo and Rin were all taking a bath together. Rin had begged them and there wasn't a living thing that could resist those chocolate eyes when they pleaded with you. She could twist anyone's will and adults were putty in her tiny hands. The bath was actually a very large marble Jacuzzi and Kikyo was currently enjoying letting the jets pummel her stiff back. Modelling took a lot out of a person and staying in the same position for so long had encouraged back pain.

Kagome had Rin on her lap and was washing her hair with Rin's strawberry scented shampoo. Rin smiled happily as Kagome's fingers massaged her sensitive scalp.

"Kikyo, is there anything going on with you and Naraku?" Kagome asked slyly

"Now what makes you say that little sister?" Kikyo asked as she disappeared into the water until only her nose and eyes were visible; her hair drifted around her like a black cloud.

"Cause you didn't even have a shoot today and yet you still went to go and see the photographer?" Kagome raised a brow

Kikyo laughed and bubbles rose to the surface of the water. She surfaced and breathed before answering "Yeah well we just met and had coffee but I think he's going to ask me out" she said in her usual indifferent manner.

"What will fair Kikyo's answer be?" Kagome grinned and ducked out of the way as Kikyo splashed at her

"I'm not sure, I mean if you asked me before today I'd have said yes" Kikyo said thoughtfully

"Which means that a certain Hanyou has caught your eye" Kagome read her twins mind as was usual. Kikyo rarely gave anything away and as such Kagome had a lot of practise in reading locked books.

"Bite me" Kikyo said and then shrieked as Kagome dethroned Rin from her lap and proceeded to chase her sister around the tub threatening to actually take her command literally and bite her.

"What the hell are they doing in there?" Inuyasha remarked to the room in general as his sensitive hearing picked up a shriek followed by a lot of giggling.

Sesshoumaru threw a book at his brother "Keep your mind out of the gutter Hanyou"

Inuyasha blushed darkly and glared at Sesshoumaru "I wasn't" he defended himself

"Yeah right" Sesshoumaru rolled his eyes

**So were you**

_Shut up_

A/N: I do not own Inuyasha and I make no profits from this other than in bundles of happiness when I get reviews (with that in mind please review). Thanks to iamyourmaster evil laughter, Gatita7Boricua, buzzaround, S3rrenity4193, Inuyasha4ev. Tsukiko-san, Akatsuki'sBloodyNekoNinja and Biteme4eturn-t for reviewing and making me happy! Yay!


	3. Work It

Chapter three: Work it.

He didn't see how he had been convinced into doing this. He had been ambushed early that morning by a hyperactive Kagome and thrown into a car and driven to a studio. He had then been forced into a chair and told to wait for the stylist.

Kagome had escaped his wrath and he could see her now, she was stood talking to a guy about the lighting for the shoot.

That was right. He was doing his first modelling job for HG designs.

He had to hand it to Megumi; she certainly didn't waste any time. They'd only had the conversation about modelling yesterday and now he was sat in a goddamn styling chair.

The makeup girl with the long straight brown hair and brown eyes approached him took one look at the murderous stare coming from his golden eyes and ran to go and get Kagome.

"Hey, Kags, you need to calm down your puppy before he starts mauling unsuspecting civilians" she said grabbing Kagome by the shoulder.

Kagome glanced over at the currently livid Sesshoumaru and swallowed loudly.

"What if he kills me?"

"We'll dispose of the body quietly" the woman's tone was reassuring even though her words were the exact opposite of reassuring

"Gee thanks Sango-chan" she rolled her blue eyes expressively

She approached the Yokai lord slowly as if he was going to blow up any second. Which he may, judging by the low growl rumbling from his chest and the stare of death.

"Sesshoumaru" she used his proper name in the hopes of not angering him further, though her overall presence seemed to make him even more blood thirsty. "You need to let them dress you and style your hair and makeup"

He gave her a look that could have frozen the sun "I do not wear makeup"

Trying not to laugh she took a different tact and crossed her fingers behind her back "I never took you for a quitter Sesshoumaru"

His head snapped up to glare at her again "I do not quit"

"So what do you call this?" she taunted "strategic retreating?"

"Fine" he growled in a voice that promised death to all

"Yay!" she clapped her hands together and bounced away "Sango-chan, I did it and I still have a head on my shoulders"

"Pity" Sango joked smirking at the hyper teen. She got hit over her head for her troubles.

Sesshoumaru sat back into the chair and tried not to care as around four human females touched his hair and his face. This was an incredibly hard feat for the Inu Yokai. It wasn't like he had ever worn makeup before and this was somewhat degrading.

"Ne, Kagome-chan" Sango sidled up to the teen who was sat alone in the corner of the set with her notepad on her lap finishing her sketches of her new designs.

"Hai?"

"Um... he's doing that thing where he's looking like a murderer again" she whispered

Kagome glanced up and sniggered uncontrollably as she caught sight of the Inu Yokai's face. The photographer was trying to coerce the young Yokai into looking sultry and seductive.

All he had managed to achieve was to look steadily more pissed.

"Oh dear" she said and then started to laugh again, clinging to her stomach as it started to hurt from laughing.

"Do something, don't just sit on your ass" Sango scolded the teenager

Kagome frowned at the predicament that she was presented with. If this shoot crashed and burned her Okasan would have her head on a silver platter. Not to mention she'd have to find something else for the Inu Yokai to do to earn money.

She stood and walked so she was behind the irate photographer. She deliberately caught the Yokai's eyes and gave him a sultry smile. She had never tired anything like this before, but she was going to have to try if she wanted the photo's to come out right.

She carefully sat in the chair just behind the photographer and allowed her skirt to drift revealing more of her toned thighs than was usually permitted. She smiled as she watched his eyes fix on her in the beginnings of lust. She brushed her hair back off her shoulders as they were revealed in the dark blue shirt she was wearing and allowed the tip of her tongue to flick out and moisten her lips.

Sesshoumaru's golden eyes began to smoulder in his attraction to the younger Miko. Part of his brain realised she was doing this on purpose and the other part was simply enjoying her lavish flirting.

"PERFECT!" the photographer was on the brink of tears as his rigid subject suddenly became fluid and provocative. He smirked; self confident in his own talents that these photographs would be exactly what Megumi-sama wanted.

"Where are you going?" Sango asked as Kagome barrelled from the chair and ran towards the door that led towards the exit.

"Running!" she called. She had a feeling that the Inu Yokai wasn't going to take very kindly to being teased by someone two years his junior in front of a room full of people. Now that the shoot was over he was perfectly free to rip her head from her shoulders.

She escaped into the corridors that led to store rooms and dressing rooms and at large the exit.

"Miko" a silky soft voice crooned into her ear as a hand tightened around her upper arm. The hand wasn't holding her in a painful grip, it was merely inescapable.

She found herself pressed against the wall by an angry and, dare she think it, aroused Inu Yokai who growled playfully at her. He put a knee to the wall and lifted it up so that he caught her between the legs and lifted her off the floor slightly, she gasped very softly and he growled in approval.

"Oops" she whispered

"Little Miko," he crooned "you should know better than to entice my beast"

"I was just helping you with the shoot." She protested putting her hands on his firm chest in a vain attempt to create a breathing space between the two of them. Trying to ignore the sensations wriggling on his knee produced.

"Hn" he said still battling with himself as he leaned in to nuzzle her neck.

She gasped and had to fight to keep herself from swooning but her pulse went wild and her breathing ragged. He inhaled the scent along her jugular, she smelled like summer thunder storms and it was as appealing as normal human scents were repugnant.

He nearly fell over when she kneed him where it hurts and flitted from his grasp into the decidedly safer arms of her twin who had arrived to pick them up after the shoot.

Kikyo gave him a look and he felt his cold facade fall back into place with finality and he raised an eyebrow at her.

So this Inu Yokai likes Kagome huh? She thought smirking on the inside whilst linking arms stoically with her sister and leaving the building.

Sesshoumaru growled his dissatisfaction to the empty corridor as they bid their retreat.

**Close, very close.**

A/N: Everyone knows I do not own Inuyasha and I make no profits from this so the lawyers can leave me alone now. Thanks to those who reviewed on fanfiction dot net last time: Biteme4eturn-t, S3rrenity4193, gigglez30 and Vampire-princesses and also thanks to all whom favourite this story.


	4. Teachers do not bow to you Sesshoumaru

Chapter four: Teachers do not bow to you Sesshoumaru

The young Inu Yokai did not awake in his usual manner that Monday morning. He had been sleeping a little fitfully due to the Hanyou's constant snoring and he was awoken when two female someone's decided to bounce on top of his bed.

He opened his eyes to find both Kagome and Rin bouncing like hyperactive kangaroos on his bed holding hands. He rolled off the bed and thumped onto the floor before yanking the comforter from beneath their feet and sending them sprawling onto the bed.

They both started to giggle and Sesshoumaru growled as he wondered whether they weren't both ten years old.

Then he noticed they were both in school uniforms. Rin was in a red sweater with a red chequered skirt and a white blouse. Kagome in a sailor fuku that consisted of a white short sleeved blouse with a sailor's blue and green neckerchief and a blue and green striped, pleated skirt.

"You are wearing a school uniform" he pointed out

"No shit Sherlock" Kagome rolled her eyes and bounced off the bed with Rin on her hip "Okasan said you guys need to put on the uniforms and eat breakfast" she pronounced as Rin hit his half brother over the head with a pillow to wake him up.

There was a grunt that disturbed the constant stream of snoring from the Inu Hanyou before he blindly swatted at the young girl and fell from the bed and onto the floor with a loud bang.

"Oops" Rin giggled innocently and Sesshoumaru found that he had developed a sudden fondness for the child though she insisted on calling him moon man still; at least she was good at putting the Hanyou in his place.

When the two trudged into the kitchen in their new school uniforms of a dark green blazer and dark blue slacks with a blue and green tie and a white shirt they were greeted by an appreciative wolf whistle from Kagome, who then started to laugh unstoppably.

"Shut it" Inuyasha replied wittily as they joined the girls at the breakfast bar.

"Do you even know why you're laughing?" Kikyo asked dryly as Kagome recovered from her hysterics

Kikyo was wearing a different uniform again from Kagome. It consisted of a black pleated skirt with a white long sleeved blouse, a black tie and a black sweater with an eagle logo on the left breast. It seemed that Kikyo existed in black and white. Permanently.

"Hai, onegai Kanna-san" Megumi walked into the kitchen on the phone, she hung up and smiled at the two guys "I hope you like the uniforms?"

"What school are we going to?" Inuyasha asked disregarding the other question as no one ever really truly liked their school uniforms. In his mind they were something to put up with until school uniform was no longer compulsory.

"The same School as Kagome" Megumi smiled

"What school do you go to?" Inuyasha asked Kikyo

"I go to St Julian's school of arts and music" she told him taking a sip of her black coffee "It is not open to normal people"

"What do you do?" Inuyasha was curious

"I am a cellist" she said shrugging and pointing at the huge white cello case that was leaning against one of the kitchen walls

"You can carry that?" Inuyasha asked dubiously

"I'm not that weak" she replied coolly

Megumi threw a set of car keys to Sesshoumaru's head and thanks to his slightly awe inspiring reflexes he caught them in time to stop harm befalling his person.

"Take the Ferrari" she advised and then she cocked her head to one side "You can drive right?"

"Yeah" he shrugged

Something caught Megumi's eye and her attention turned from the Yokai to Kagome.

"Young lady put those keys down and step away from the key rack" Megumi said in a commanding tone of voice

Kagome winced put the keys she had been trying to lift down and twirled slowly to face her mother. "Hai, Okasan?"

"Don't play dumb" Megumi was not amused "you are not taking Ocean Beauty to school with you; they will kick you out for thuggish behaviour"

"Thuggish behaviour?" she rolled her expressive blue eyes "melodramatic much?"

"The school is very elite" Megumi scolded "and you are not going to get kicked out"

The way she said the last made it sound as if Kagome had been kicked out of school before. Sesshoumaru decided to file away the information for later.

"We need to go now" Kikyo pointed out which caused a massive freak out on the part of everyone who wasn't Kikyo and Sesshoumaru. Rin had lost her shoes, the cat had hidden the house keys, Megumi had lost her USB stick and Kagome was trying to find the enrolment papers for both Sesshoumaru and Inuyasha.

They blessedly made it to school on time even with the hindrance of Kagome's directions. Sesshoumaru had a bad feeling about the school seeing as when he and his baka half brother walked through the school nearly every female stopped to gape.

"This is Sesshoumaru Taisho" the teacher introduced Sesshoumaru to the class and they stared back at him in awe as he surveyed them with borderline resentment. "Please take care of him"

Sesshoumaru inwardly scoffed at the thought of anyone needing to take care of him.

The class was Physics. The topic of conversation however was Sesshoumaru. The teacher may have remained blissfully unaware of the whispered conversations from Sesshoumaru's new fan girls but Sesshoumaru's sensitive ears were denied the luxury of ignorance. He could only feign it. This was not going well.

His left eye was beginning to twitch with his restraint and his poison claws digging into the desk were making it dissolve. The volume of chatter was increasing rapidly and now even the teacher was feigning ignorance.

Silence descended upon the room as Sesshoumaru snapped and stood up abruptly.

"Can I help you Mr Taisho?" the teacher was surprised at the level of fury writ on the young Yokai's face.

"I'm leaving" the enraged barely in control Yokai stalked from the classroom leaving a surprised and flustered Physics teacher hollering at his retreating back.

***

"Ne Kagome-chan" Kagome looked up from her math textbook to see her friend Ayame looming over her and speaking quietly due to the fact they were in the library during free study period. "Isn't that the guy you arrived with today?"

Kagome's eyes followed the direction she was pointing and she gazed out of the window at a now blazer-less Sesshoumaru as he stalked across the quad in the direction of the old willow tree at the far end of the school. Kagome thought back to when he had been given his schedule and realised he was ditching. Her Okasan was going to kill her.

"Damn him" Kagome said standing and throwing her textbooks back into her bag "I've got to go okay Ayame-chan?"

"Where are you going?" Ayame asked inn shock as her friend darted past her

"Dog handling" she tossed over her shoulder as explanation before bolting from the library after her runaway puppy.

Sesshoumaru heard her approach his perch in the tree and then the scent of summer thunderstorms hit his senses and he inhaled deeply and prepared for the almost inevitable tirade of cursing that was probably going to follow his little stunt.

"What happened?" she asked as she leant back against the trunk of the tree with her arms folded across her chest. She was mentally wondering whether a leash was in order for her delinquent puppy.

This was so not what he was expecting. In fact it came as so much of a shock that he nearly fell out of the tree; except he wasn't the sort of person who did things accidentally.

"I hate being fawned over" he told her

"Ah" she said in understanding, Kikyo had to cope with the same feeling a lot of the time and she was used to dealing with that kind of complaint "how'd you get the teacher to let you go?"

"I walked out"

"You can't do that"

"Obviously I can otherwise I wouldn't be here now" he smirked

"Don't be pedantic, it makes you seem petty" she said grabbing hold of a branch above her head before pulling herself up into the tree alongside of him so she could look at him whilst they conversed. She got onto the branch and then wavered for a few seconds before steadying herself triumphantly. He couldn't help but wonder how long her precarious balance would last.

"Are you sure that's safe?" he asked

"I don't need you to worry over me" she replied as she tucked a strand of raven hair behind her ear

"Hn"

"You're going to have to apologise to Sensei" she told him

"Why should I?" he tossed his hair arrogantly and she giggled.

"Because moon man, the teachers don't bow down to you" she said this in her best patronising tone.

"Will you stop calling me moon man?" he asked as the bell that signalled class changing sounded in the distance

"I don't bow down to you either" she rolled her eyes and dropped from the branches and landed on the soft earth nearly falling over sideways. He sniggered at her and she stuck her tongue out at him.

He watched her leave and smiled to himself.

Then he snapped back to his Sesshoumaru senses and inwardly rolled his eyes, he wasn't the sort of person who smiled goofily at a little girl.

_She will be my downfall._

**Yep**

_Shut up_

A/N: I do not own Inuyasha and I make no profit from this. Thanks to my latest reviewers: Serenity digo19, gigglez30, addiesmoon, Biteme4eturn-t, S3rrenity4193, Moonlight X Luna and Kiya- Eye of the beholder.


	5. Inuyasha Vs School

Chapter five: Inuyasha Vs School

This was why he hated school. Inuyasha was sat in his maths class and looking at the boring teacher like he was speaking some kind of foreign language. He was slowly losing the fight to stay awake and he knew that if his ass of a half brother would tell him he was childish and stupid for not understanding. It irked Inuyasha how perfectly pulled together Sesshoumaru was every goddamn second of the day.

Kagome was sat next to him, paying less attention to the droning voice than Inuyasha was and tapping her pencil against her sketch pad. He glanced down at the formerly white piece of paper that was now covered in random dress designs and bizarrely enough she seemed to be drawing sets of intensely staring eyes down the side as well. He didn't think she even realised what she was doing.

She gave a long sigh and serrupticiously stretched her cramping muscles before putting a hand on his shoulder and leaning in to speak in Inuyasha's ear.

"Did you see that?" she asked pointing out the window

"What?" he was confused

"My will to live, it just flew out of the window" she rolled her eyes and they both chuckled darkly.

Ayame, who was sat on the other side of Kagome, leant across "Be quiet or they bring out the thumb screws next" she smiled revealing her wolf fangs

Inuyasha smiled at the girl whilst Kagome battled with her giggles, he liked this ookami, the same couldn't be said for the one who sat in front of Kagome though.

As if he had been waiting for the cue Koga turned around to glare at the proximity of Inuyasha and Kagome.

"Hey half breed, you shouldn't be touching something as pure as a Miko" he growled so low that Kagome's human ears and Ayame who was too far away couldn't hear him. Inuyasha's ears flattened to his skull as the comment hit home slightly.

It wasn't like he had any interest in Kagome that was anything other than platonic (his brother might kill him otherwise) but he knew a Miko who he'd love to be on a less than platonic relationship with. He'd been treated all his life like a second class citizen, his brother was acceptable because that was just Sesshoumaru being Sesshoumaru but it stung to have to listen to insults from the ookami. He was probably right Inuyasha thought dejectedly, Kikyo wouldn't want something as disgusting as a Hanyou touching her.

***

Kagome wasn't stupid; she knew something was wrong with her Hanyou friend. He had been dejected and his ears plastered to his head since math class. She knew he hated math as much as she did but she didn't know he hated it that much. Which meant it had to be something else.

Sesshoumaru could also sense the Hanyou's discomfort that was more melancholy. He had no idea of the source of the bad mood however and due to his blatant lack of social skills he was unsure of how to get the relevant information from the Hanyou without sounding like he cared. Because he didn't.

**Yeah right, we all know pack law rules.**

_Shut up, I'm telling you if you weren't part of me you'd be dead already._

**Calm down, I'm supposed to be the angry one**

_Shut up_

They were sat in the cafeteria, against Sesshoumaru's wishes. His lunch time spot of choice was outside away from the masses, but he wasn't stupid enough to leave the relative safety of Kagome's side. While he was with her he was only treated to longing looks and flirtatious smiles, if he strayed from the safety of her company he was more often than not tackled by a bunch of mad hormonal women. He was really beginning to regret making the promise with Kagome that he wouldn't kill anyone. He stepped marginally closer to her and she hit him.

"Don't use me as a human shield" she warned him

"I would never do something as cowardly as hide behind someone" he sneered at her and she scoffed

"Don't make me leave you alone," she sniggered "maybe I should let them have their wicked way with you in a broom closet somewhere"

He chuckled darkly "Don't project your own fantasies onto others" he teased

She blushed slightly and treated him to a glare "My fantasies are a lot less grubby, who would actually have sex in a cupboard anyhow?" she said

"I'm sure I could convince you" he whispered in her ear running his claws along her back seductively. He was sick of her always teasing him; it was about time for some revenge. She blushed furiously and tried to think of a comeback.

"Aw, come on some of us are trying to eat" Ayame wrinkled up her nose

"Speaking of eating, why haven't you touched your food Inuyasha?" Kagome turned a concerned gaze onto the Hanyou who was usually the black hole of food. By this time he had usually eaten all of his food and was trying to filch some of theirs.

Inuyasha continued to gaze out of the window of the cafeteria with a vacant look in his eyes.

"Inuyasha?" Kagome asked trying to gain his attention and failing spectacularly he looked stoned or something his eyes were so vacant.

Sesshoumaru sighed and hit the Hanyou around the back of his head. This effectively gained both the Hanyou's attention and his glare.

"Why the fuck did you do that?" he demanded

"Because you had been abducted by the daydream fairies" Kagome said as she began to lazily braid some of Ayame's red hair.

"Seventy percent of what comes out of your mouth is complete babble" Sesshoumaru sighed

"More like a hundred percent" Ayame sniggered

"I have in the palm of my hand power over you" Kagome said giving a gentle tug on the red hair to demonstrate "don't make me exercise it"

"Gomen" Ayame yelped

"The point still stands" Kagome pivoted her attention back to Inuyasha

"Yeah? And what question is that wench?" Inuyasha growled, he was wallowing in the pits of self pity and didn't appreciate being bothered.

"What is the matter?" she asked slowly like she was speaking to a child that was learning to speak and had barely limited understanding.

"Nothing, keh" he grumbled

Kagome was beginning to get seriously pissed off and was considering hitting Inuyasha upside the head with something, or someone when a certain wolf demon intervened.

"Kagome!" Kouga exclaimed in delight as he sat at their table jamming a chair in-between her and Sesshoumaru without a backwards glance at the obviously irritated Yokai.

"Kouga-kun" Kagome's reply was less enthusiastic, but this flew over his head.

"What the hell do you want baka ookami" needless to say Inuyasha wasn't exactly happy over seeing him again

"Shut up half breed, I don't have to listen to you" said Kouga rolling his eyes

Both Kagome and Sesshoumaru tensed at the venom in his tone and turned to frown at him whilst Ayame rolled her eyes.

"Yeah well no one invited you into this conversation" Inuyasha bit back

"Yeah I may not be welcome in this conversation" Kouga grinned "but at least I'm welcome in the presence of normal people, same can't be said for you huh Hanyou?" he jeered

Sesshoumaru growled and cracked his knuckles in a threatening manner, he was the only one allowed to taunt the Hanyou and he was preparing to rectify the situation when he was beaten to it by a severely annoyed Ayame.

She leant over and grabbed the offending ookami by the lobe of his pointed ear and dragged him down to her mouth.

"Shut the fuck up" she snarled before tossing him onto the floor of the cafeteria with an ease that was faintly comical. She got up from her seat and loomed over the fallen ookami before pinning him to the floor by his neck in a show of dominance.

"Is she his mate?" Sesshoumaru whispered in Kagome's ear

"I didn't think so" she replied in a hushed tone "but now I'm not so sure"

Sesshoumaru smirked. Within the ookami Yokai hierarchy the female is more dominant and a challenge such as the one she was presenting by dominating him in front of the entire cafeteria of enthralled students was unlikely to be taken lying down. Kouga would, if he had a lick of sense he would accept the challenge.

Sesshoumaru gazed down at the fallen, stupidly grinning ookami, and he knew in that second that this ookami wouldn't take up the challenge.

_Baka ookami_

**Like you can say anything with Kagome sat right there**

_Shut up already_

***

"Are you okay Inuyasha?" Kikyo was concerned, not that you'd know it by her tone, she sounded kind of bored and if you didn't know her you'd assume she was bored. They were sat in the penthouse kitchen, Sesshoumaru had vanished to his darkened sanctum, Inuyasha was slurping instant Ramen with less gusto than usual and Kagome was playing with Rin's hair as she sat at one of the bar stools eating a gingerbread cookie.

"Keh, I'm fine" he snarled

Kagome hit him with a flip-flop she had procured from seemingly nowhere and he rubbed his head before turning to glare at her.

"What'd you do that for wench?" he asked

She hit him with the flip-flop again "Don't call me wench and stop snarling at everyone who is expressing concern for your welfare." She scolded

Kikyo looked at Inuyasha intently for a moment before privately concluding that depression didn't suit him. She tapped his shoulder and he turned to glare at her instead and she hugged him in the same way she used to hug Kagome when there was a thunderstorm.

"Wh-what... Kikyo?" he stuttered blushing ten shades of red, she was standing whilst he was sitting so he currently had the side of his face pressed against her breast bone.

She released him and took the cup of his finished Ramen and put it in the bin calmly. He looked to Kagome for reassurance and she raised an eyebrow at him.

"That's how Kikyo soothes people, silent hugs" Kagome told him "next time if you're lucky she'll kiss you on the top of your head too"

The Hanyou blushed an even deeper red and Kagome tilted her head to one side in mock concern "are you okay Inuyasha, you're awfully red"

"Keh, shut up wench" he muttered but inside he felt better. He had worried Kikyo wouldn't want a filthy Hanyou to touch her but then she had gone and hugged him. The last time he had been hugged had been a long time ago and the familiar forgotten feeling was soothing.

Kikyo's blackberry beeped and she flipped it open read the message and then smirked the most evil of smirks, it was so scary it rivalled Sesshoumaru. Both Inuyasha and Kagome took an unconscious step back from her and Rin whimpered.

"What?" Inuyasha demanded whilst Kagome muttered something like 'the apocalypse is nigh' and hid behind Rin.

"Guess where we are going?" she shook her blackberry in his face and he narrowed his eyes as he tried to read the text.

Kagome gave a yelp as she realised what was going on and tried to bolt only to collide with the firm chest of Sesshoumaru.

"Hold her!" Kikyo ordered and in confused shock Sesshoumaru obeyed clamping his hands around Kagome's upper arms in a vice like grip.

"No let me go" she whimpered

"What's going on?" Sesshoumaru asked in confusion, an emotion he wasn't well versed in and was uncomfortable experiencing it.

"We are all needed to do some modelling for Okasan's new summer wear" Kikyo grinned

Inuyasha paled and whimpered his ears flattening to his head "Aw, come on my day sucks already, don't I get a free pass?"

"No" Kikyo slung her bag over her shoulder and grabbed Rin's hand "Come on Rin" she then proceeded to grab Inuyasha by one furry appendage and drag him out as well she paused in the door way "come on and bring the next victim" she tossed over her shoulder as she nodded towards Kagome.

Sesshoumaru smirked and it was terrifying before he slung a wailing Kagome over one broad shoulder and carried her from the apartment, ignoring her when she pounded her fists on his back. Revenge was indeed sweet.

***

They had set up the set on location, which was unusual for Megumi who mostly made them work off a set but it had been explained that they wanted it to look more realistic. So they were all stood alongside a privately owned outdoor swimming pool in one of the most exclusive hotels in the city that had been paid to close the pool just for the shoot. The pool overlooked the beach and although it may have been freezing, it didn't look it. The view was the scary kind of perfect that postcards always seemed to depict.

Rin was sat across from Kagome on the makeshift desk that was supposed to hold makeup for Sango, she was sucking on a lollipop that she had procured from somewhere within Sango's bag of doom. Kagome had gone inside that bag before today and found condoms, a Mickey Mouse fountain pen, a plastic tea cup and a Barbie head. Strangely enough she's never gone back into Sango's bag again.

Sango was charged with looking after Rin for the extent of the shoot as she was not needed to model today.

"I hate you" Kagome glared at Kikyo who chose to merely beam at her, which was scary in itself.

"I love you too" was the reply

"How can you do this to me?" Kagome questioned as Sango carefully applied blusher to her aristocratic cheekbones

"I simply do not know what you are talking about" said Kikyo tossing her newly styled hair in a way that made the hair stylist grit his teeth together and count to ten in his head.

"Done!" Sango exclaimed throwing Kagome out onto the set with a reckless abandon that nearly resulted in breaking Naraku's precious camera. He jumped from wherever he'd been lurking and grabbed it out of the way with the scary grace that only he could posses.

"Watch it" he snarled at her

She gave him a look that blatantly screamed 'overreaction much?' but apologised anyway "Gomen"

"What's eating him?" Inuyasha asked appearing behind Kagome and nearly giving her a heart attack. He was wearing beach shorts and a vest that exposed the muscled biceps of his arms, he was tanned a golden colour and it suited him enough that hewas distracting the other females who were supposed to be working.

"Don't do that" she hit his arm and bruised her hand "don't worry about him, he's just an ass who's in love with his camera"

"Why are you freaking out over the shoot?" he asked "I thought you were used to this modelling shit"

She rolled her eyes at his coarse language "I help out sometimes, but I hate doing bathing suit shoots!"

"Why?" he asked dumbly and Kagome slapped her hand onto her forehead

"And therein lies the key as to why you dear brother have no girlfriend" Sesshoumaru did the appearing out of nowhere trick that seemed popular on that day and they both jumped out of their skin. He like Inuyasha was in casual beach wear and the top three buttons on the shirt were undone exposing sculpted ivory chest muscles to Kagome's gaze, she blushed and thanked whoever might be listening for him not noticing.

"What the hell do you mean?" Inuyasha threw at Sesshoumaru once he had recovered

"You're an idiot" Kagome simplified

"If you weren't a girl I'd have hit you already" he glared at her

"If it came to a fight between the two of us I'd purify your ass before you could twitch your ears" Kagome was dismissive and her tone caused Sesshoumaru to crack a rare and thankfully unnoticed smile that he hid quickly.

"Yeah?" Inuyasha glared at her

"You two need to stop acting so juvenile" Kikyo commented as she walked up to them

"I thought you guys were supposed to be in bathing suits" a proverbial light bulb went on above Inuyasha's head

"We are" Kagome wondered where he was going with this

"So what's with the robe thing?" he asked plucking at the robe sleeve covering Kikyo's arm. She slapped him away and gave him a look.

"Even though it's sunny it's cold and we don't want pneumonia" Kikyo pointed out

"Someone's a pervert" Sesshoumaru smirked

"Shut up!" Inuyasha yelled

"You get here!" a woman yelled at Kagome and Sesshoumaru before grabbing a wrist in each of her hands and dragging them away after her leaving a flabbergasted Inuyasha and a bemused Kikyo in her wake.

"Where'd she come from?" Inuyasha muttered

"There's a lot of that happening today" said Kikyo musingly

Meanwhile Kagome was becoming involved with an altercation with the woman who had whisked them away. She was trying to get Kagome to take of the robe and Kagome was clinging to it like a drowning man clings to a life preserver.

"What's her problem?" Inuyasha asked

"When we were younger people used to tease her about her weight" Kikyo said "because we were twins and I was always so bony"

"She was bullied?" Inuyasha asked in concern for his new, if a little weird, friend. He knew the sensation of being picked on for no fault of your own.

"Yeah I guess, she wasn't fat she was normal but because I was so small and we were twins they wailed on her. When we moved schools when I was ten she punched the first guy in the face who said she was fat"

"Sounds like Kagome" Inuyasha nodded and chuckled

"She says she's over it" Kikyo said strangely comfortable for talking for a long period of time due to the fact that had always been Kagome's job, she realised her new found comfort in the spoken word was all the dog eared boys doing and wondered "but she's still a little uncomfortable when she's not wearing many clothes"

"Which leads to this" Inuyasha raised an eyebrow as Kagome folded her arms across her chest and stubbornly turned away from the woman.

The woman was apparently unwilling to be shown up by a teenage girl and whipped the robe from Kagome forcibly revealing her standing there in nothing but a white and blue bikini with a blue sarong thrown around her shapely hips.

The way the woman revealed Kagome's bare flesh held the essence of someone doing a magic trick and everyone had turned to look. The new lighting guy's mouth fell open and he dropped the seriously expensive equipment he was carrying.

"Bitch" Kagome muttered glaring at the woman who had promptly hidden her robe somewhere and was now stood behind Naraku with a self satisfied smirk decorating her features.

"I see why you wanted to cover up" Sesshoumaru intoned in her ear.

She froze, what the hell did that mean?

"I've never seen one woman cause so much mayhem by just uncovering her body" Sesshoumaru was oblivious to her reaction and was watching the lighting guy recover stupidly and receive a tongue lashing from Naraku for breaking the equipment.

Kagome relaxed when she realised what he meant, for one brief terrifying moment she was five years old again, being heckled by the kids at school.

Sesshoumaru on the other hand was beginning to view modelling in a less negative way. If posing to some camera provided him with unadulterated access to Kagome's almost naked body he was happy. Perverted, but happy and that was not something that happened much.

Naraku recovered from his little tantrum over the smashed, ludicrously expensive equipment and turned back to the two he wanted to pose. Megumi's instructions had been happy, carefree and fun, he surveyed the two models musingly before clicking his finger's together as he thought of something.

"Sesshoumaru-kun, Kagome-chan I need you to do something" he called gaining their attention they both looked at him expectantly. "Can you put Kagome-chan on your back?"

The two models glanced at each other and shrugged before Kagome jumped onto Sesshoumaru's back and he held her as she tried to use his as a getaway vehicle to escape the shoot. He glowered at her and she stopped and sulked.

"Okay, Kagome-chan don't cross your legs let him hold them, Sesshoumaru-kun move your hands further up her legs towards the tops of her thighs, Kagome-chan I need you to lean back from his body so we can see more of the bikini, okay can someone give Kagome those silvery sandals to hold in one hand and can someone undo another two buttons on the shirt he's wearing?"

Sesshoumaru growled at the woman who undid his buttons and Kagome 'accidentally' pinched his neck which led to an undignified yelp which made her start laughing. He pinched her thigh and she stopped laughing abruptly.

"I need you guys to look contented and happy" Naraku ordered

Inuyasha burst out laughing "Hate to break this to you man, but Sesshoumaru doesn't know what happy means"

Naraku gave him a look that would have turned most people to ice, he wasn't comfortable with how close Inuyasha was to Kikyo but he was too professional to say anything about it.

"Come on Sesshoumaru you have to smile!" Kagome encouraged in the same manner one might encourage a turbulent puppy.

"I will drop you"

"You love me really" she grinned inanely and he rolled his eyes

"Hey, Kagome" Inuyasha yelled from his place beside Kikyo "if you want him to smile then try tickling his ears"

Sesshoumaru growled viscously at the Hanyou and both Kikyo and Kagome looked perplexed. Actually it was rather that Kagome looked comically perplexed whereas Kikyo with a certain air of dignity merely looked enquiring.

"The ears are one of the most sensitive places on an Inu Yokai" Inuyasha pointed out and then chuckled darkly, a chord stuck within Kikyo and she realised that the Hanyou was merely saying a half-truth, there was some hidden agenda and due to the increased volume behind Sesshoumaru's growls .

"What are you planning?" she whispered in his furry dog ear

"Who, me?" he acted innocent and she smirked

She grabbed said furry white appendage and yanked him down to the level of her mouth "Talk" she ordered

"They are really sensitive!" he whimpered and she wondered suddenly if she were some kind of sadist as she smirked at his annoyed expression. Ah well, all is good as long as she doesn't start spilling hot wax on him...

"But what's your agenda?" she asked softly

"If you touch them right it can be incredibly arousing" he said that so fast that she struggled to hear it and when she finally deciphered the random jumble of words she did something she never did and started to laugh, a genuine belly aching laugh that wasn't teasing or scornful. Sango raised an eyebrow and silently concluded that the apocalypse was coming.

Kikyo recovered from her laughter and rubbed the ear she had just abused, causing his chest to reverberate with something she could only describe as a purr. If Inuyasha still harboured any doubts over what Kouga had said he didn't after that, he'd just told her that rubbing ears was sexual and yet here she was; rubbing his ears.

Kagome who was not a demon had no idea what Kikyo and Inuyasha were arguing over and decided to shrug it off and try what Inuyasha had suggested.

Sesshoumaru tensed as he felt her nimble fingers trace the tips of his pointed ears and he grit his jaw to stop from purring or moaning or both. Her delicate touch on his ears was stimulating an entirely different part of his anatomy and that goddamn Hanyou had planned that. What really irked him though was not the teasing she was naively inflicting on him; it was the fact that she was inflicting it naively.

"Stop or prepare to meet with the floor rather sharply" he threatened

She jerked upright from her slouch and raised her eyebrows "Why? I'm only trying to help"

"You are not helping, desist"

She glowered at the back of his head and pouted.

"Stop pouting, we're doing a shoot" he said in a bored monotone as he watched Naraku lose patience with them and grind his teeth together.

She gasped in shock and began to check the back of his head for a third eye or something, how the hell had he managed to be able to tell the face she was pulling?

"You're very predictable"

And now he can read minds, she pouted some more and smirked when Naraku looked like he was going to tear his wavy black hair out; she never really liked that guy.

"Stop pouting it is unbecoming"

"I'll stop pouting when you start smiling" she gave him and ultimatum which he hated, it was not as if she had any control over him.

He turned to look at the camera and smiled...

Several of the women working on the shoot fainted, more swooned and Kikyo rolled her eyes.

"What did you do?" Kagome asked in surprise, she was the only one who couldn't see his face

"He's smiling!" Inuyasha crowed as Kagome laughed and Naraku started to take his shots. Inuyasha was glad someone was taking photos of this, he needed proof that such a thing had ever occurred.

Kikyo and Inuyasha had an easier time when they were called to pose. Kikyo was asked to sit with her legs dangling in the pool and kick the water which worked well for what Naraku wanted to achieve. Inuyasha was coerced into swimming through the pool whilst Naraku tried to get good shots of a moving entity, it was hard to do but it would be even harder to pose him to make it look like he was swimming. Then he got Kagome and Kikyo to jump in the pool together. Kikyo, Kagome and Sesshoumaru sat around a table on the terrace with a parasol offering some shade whilst laughing...

"And that's it, nice work everyone, we have some good shit here" Naraku wouldn't sound enthusiastic about the shoot to the average listener but he had to admit it had been good. What the two brothers lacked in experience they made up for in looks, not to mention the girls were very patient in schooling them. He couldn't help but worry about how patient Kikyo was being; she was normally cool and detached with everyone other than Kagome and Rin but she was warming up to Inuyasha more than he had been able to achieve over four months. It was irritating and he left the shoot pretty fast.

"Hey guys" Megumi appeared out of nowhere and got her knees tackled by Rin as Sango bid them farewell.

"Hey Okasan" Kagome smiled and Kikyo nodded

"Megumi-san" Sesshoumaru nodded and Inuyasha saluted her

"I bought the pool for the entire day but you guys finished early" she grinned as Kagome widened her eyes in anticipation "so you guys can play for a while as long as you don't come back too late"

Inuyasha grinned and Kagome gave a whoop of happiness whilst Kikyo cracked a small smile and Sesshoumaru remained impassive.

"Can I stay?" Rin questioned looking up at her Obasan

"Gomen, Rin-chan but you have to go to Rei-chan's birthday party" Megumi smiled and then glanced at her slim watch "Which we are already late for"

"Yay!" Rin giggled "birthday cake"

"See you guys later" Megumi smiled "take advantage of those bathing suits I made you model"

"Do you ever stop to think how sad it is that Rin-chan has a better social life than us?" Kagome asked as Rin and Megumi left.

"Speak for yourself" Kikyo tossed her hair and Kagome elbowed her in her ribs

Inuyasha jumped straight into the pool causing a tidal waved that soaked the other three teenagers.

"I think that answers your question" Sesshoumaru noted

"He demeans us" Kagome sighed

"Shut up and jump in!" Inuyasha ordered tossing his now soaking hair back off his face as he breached the surface of the pool.

"Go drown" Kagome rolled her eyes at him

Sesshoumaru smirked and casually pushed her into the pool, there was an almighty smack as she hit the surface of the water and then sank into its depths. Sesshoumaru's eyes glinted in an evil manner revenge it seemed truly was satisfying.

"What was that for?" she threw at him when she broke the surface of the water gasping. Sesshoumaru allowed himself a moment to commit the view of her with drops of water clinging to her skin to memory before he answered.

"If you don't know I'm not going to tell you" Sesshoumaru rolled his eyes

"Insufferable" she muttered glaring at him

"Hn" he smirked and she smirked back reaching out and grabbing him by his shorts before pulling him into the water. Of course a young ningen onna shouldn't have been able to do that to a Yokai, but he was unsuspecting and she was pissed. When he surfaced she started to laugh and a water fight was quickly undertaken.

Kikyo smiled softly, unseen by the others and then dived elegantly into the fray. Unbeknownst to everyone she loved moments of complete stupidity, they made her feel safe and wanted. It was hard being her but being her with them was easy.

She gasped as a tidal wave of water hit her courtesy of a certain Hanyou.

Acting stupid was fun.

A/N: I do not own Inuyasha and no profit is made from this. Yay another chapter, is everyone happy? Thanks to those people who reviewed last time; Moonlight X Luna, Serenity digo19, Vampire-princesses, gigglez30, Kiya-Eye of the beholder, White-cloud1 and Pcebabe. Please review again mina-san!

Ja ne Aimee-chan


	6. Kikyo swears she doesn’t have a Hanyou f

Chapter Six: Kikyo swears she doesn't have a Hanyou fetish

Kikyo stopped reading her magazine as her sisters and the two dogs traipsed into the penthouse after school.

They were arguing. But this was normal.

"All I want to know is why?" Kagome sounded a cross between angry and exasperated

"And I said it's none of your business bitch" Inuyasha replied as they made their way in from the hall and into the living room. Inuyasha stalked into the living room and flopped onto a sofa lengthways in apparent disgust.

"What happened to you?" Kikyo asked the Inu Hanyou

"Keh" was the response

"He got in a fight" Kagome supplied an answer of a little more substance before rolling her eyes and sitting catlike next to her twin. Rin came and sat in between the twins and continued to suck the lollipop she had procured from god knows where.

"Why?" Kikyo asked the obvious follow-up question

"He refuses to speak on that matter" Sesshoumaru spoke before ditching his school bag and heading up the stairs and to his room like the unsociable person he was. Or rather he preferred not to spend his precious time deigning to try and coax a response from his stubborn and insignificant brother.

"Why?" Kikyo directed her question for the second time at the Hanyou sprawled on the couch

"Just leave it" he growled

Kagome shrugged "Whatever, I'm sick of this I've been trying to get you to speak ever since we were in Biology!" she grabbed Rin's hand and turned to her sister as they stood "I'm going to go and work on the scaffolding for my new designs"

Kikyo watched her sisters depart and then turned back to the stubbornly silent Hanyou. She stood and walked over so she loomed over him, her gaze boring into his forehead.

He opened one golden eye and then shut it again quickly as he realised she was trying to make him crack through staring alone. He wasn't that easy. Yeah right.

"What?" he snapped barely two seconds into her staring fest

"Why?" she barked in the same tone he had used on her

"None of your damn business" he grouched "leave me alone"

"Baka" she hit him with a sofa cushion "It's my business because I said so"

"I'm Hanyou, are you happy now?" he shouted pulling a cushion over his head to hide her face from his eyes.

"I asked you the reason you got into a fight" she said dryly "and you tell me what species you are"

"The reason I got into a fight was because I'm Hanyou baka" he bit out

"What did they say?" her voice was marginally warmer

"They insulted my mother, they said my father was trash for lowering himself to sleeping with a human, they said I was a freak" he sighed "I deal with that kind of shit every day, but like my dear Onii-san says I have a short temper"

"Did you win?" she asked

"Of course" he scoffed "I may be Hanyou but I'm not useless"

She laughed briefly which was a rarity for Kikyo. But he heard it anyway and smiled under the cushion. She snatched the cushion away from his face abruptly.

"I'll explain to Okasan" she told him "and if it happens again why not sick Kagome-chan and Sesshoumaru-san on them?"

"I fight my own battles wench" he told her doing a Sesshoumaru and abruptly becoming haughty

She dropped the cushion on his head and rolled her eyes "Ja ne Inuyasha-kun" she said wandering up the stairs whilst shaking her head.

***

Ring, ring. Riiiiiiing.

It was beginning to grate on the nerves of everyone in the room.

The cat was currently trying to rid itself of the cursed appendages called ears. Sesshoumaru was still feigning reading the Chemistry text book that was sat in his lap but the facade was cracking and his eye was beginning to twitch.

Ring, ring. Riiiiiiing.

It must have sounded like he had developed tinnitus for the Inu Yokai and his sensitive hearing. Rin had her care bear ear muffs on and was determinedly not paying attention to the phone's infernal racket.

Kagome was listening to her IPod whilst painting her toenails red to match her fingers. The brush was shaking in her hand as she tried and failed to block out the godforsaken ringing noise.

Ring, ring. Riiiiiing.

Inuyasha walked into the apartment and looked around at the three determinedly ignorant people who were refusing to acknowledge the constantly, furiously, ringing phone. And then he nearly jumped out of his skin as a tabby blur that was apparently the cat shot through his legs and made a bid for freedom out of the newly opened front door.

"Why is no one answering that?" he asked and reached out to answer it

Rin flung herself at his outstretched hand and wrapped herself around it "Don't do it Dog boy!" she begged very loudly seeing as she couldn't hear very well due to the ear muffs.

Ring, ring. Riiiiiing.

"Why?" he asked as he tried to shake the limpet girl from his arm

"Because it's for Kikyo-san" Sesshoumaru bit out from in between clenched teeth

"Huh?" Inuyasha was confused; it didn't take much.

"It's the photographer called Naraku who has decided to ask her out" Kagome explained "but Kikyo told him no"

"So why is he still ringing?" Inuyasha was still confused and a little irritated that someone was bugging Kikyo this much.

Ring, ring. Riiiiiing.

"He didn't get the message" Kagome growled "AHHH!"

They all jumped at the sudden exclamation of fury from the otherwise sedate if hyper girl as she grabbed the phone and ripped it from the socket.

Silence. Blessed silence.

They all sighed in contentment as the blessed sound immersed their tired ears.

"Where is Kikyo?" Inuyasha asked

"She said she would be home at six" Kagome glanced at the clock and saw that it was quarter past "If she's not home she's probably in a coffee place, if you want to find her try the place just across the square from the studio"

"Thanks" Inuyasha grabbed the keys that he had only recently discarded onto the coffee table and walked back out the door.

"Dog boy left" Rin stated the obvious

"So cute!" Kagome mock swooned

"What's wrong with you?" Sesshoumaru crooked an eyebrow at the strange girl

"If you don't see what's going on then you never will" she rolled her eyes at the emotionally stunted Yokai.

***

"That girl is hot"

"She kind of looks like Kikyo Higurashi"

"The model?"

"Don't be a baka a supermodel wouldn't come in here"

Kikyo sighed under her breath at the speculative gossip that plagued the air around her and glanced down at her still vibrating phone to see she now had forty one missed calls from Naraku. She opened the back of her phone and pulled the battery out.

"He's calling your cell too huh?" a strangely familiar voice intoned

Kikyo looked up into the somehow soothing golden eyes of a certain Inu Hanyou and allowed a small smile to grace her perfect features.

He slid into the seat opposite her. "You said you'd be home twenty minutes ago"

"Yeah" she said drumming her fingers on the table

"Why aren't you?" he asked

"Naraku knows where I live" she pointed out

"So you're running away?" he scoffed

She kicked him under the table "Don't be insensitive" she scolded

"Ow" he said grumpily

"Arigato" she said looking down at the table

"For what?" he was surprised

"Caring enough to come and see if I was okay" she said straight faced but with a hint of colour in her otherwise waxy cheeks

He blushed slightly and turned his head to hide it "Keh, I only came cause you were late" he denied

She smiled again and drank the last of the coffee. Before looking up and groaning as she caught sight of the person she really didn't need to see.

"Shit" she mumbled but Inuyasha heard her and glanced over his shoulder at the approaching source of her discomfort.

"Naraku" she said in her usual cold voice "what are you doing here?"

"Wondering what you are doing with the puppy" he gestured at Inuyasha dismissively his red brown eyes alight with malice.

"Who're you calling puppy?" Inuyasha growled

"Learn your place Hanyou" he was dismissive "I was talking to Kikyo"

"You call me Hanyou" Inuyasha laughed shortly without humour "Doesn't it take one to know one?"

Naraku's eyes widened in shock "What?" he demanded shortly

"You aren't full demon" Inuyasha rolled his eyes

"Shut up Hanyou" he snarled slamming his hands onto the table

"Did I hit a nerve?" Inuyasha enquired innocently as Naraku stormed from the coffee shot like an errant wasp had stung him up the ass.

Kikyo giggled again "Arigato Inuyasha-kun"

"Keh" she hadn't expected any other response.

***

"So I'm guessing something good happened between you and Inuyasha" Kagome said in a muffled way due to the vast amount of pins she was holding in her mouth.

Kikyo raised an elegant eyebrow at her sister as she stood atop the stool and her sister fitted her into the newest empire waist gown for HG designs in Kagome's bedroom. Kagome of course had her own dressmaker's dummies, an entire army of them. But sister bonding was in order and due to the fact she had to finish this dress for tomorrow's shoot this was the only way they were going to get it.

"What do you mean?" Kikyo played it cool

"Kikyo-chan!" Kagome pouted "since when do you hide stuff from me?"

"Since forever" Kikyo smirked

Kagome grinned mischievously and accidentally on purpose caught Kikyo's ankle with a pin as she set to work on the hem.

"Ow, bitch" Kikyo grumbled

"There are many, many more where that came from" Kagome warned around the pins in her mouth

"So you're going to torture me until I talk?" Kikyo questioned

"I'm telling you not to make me resort to that" Kagome shrugged

"Fine, what do you want?" Kikyo had always been weak towards her little sisters whims.

"What happened yesterday when he went out to find you and you came back together?" Kagome dove straight in there with her no holds barrelled assault of questions.

"He managed to completely show Naraku up and I am finally rid of the scary guy" she said shrugging

"Stay still" Kagome growled menacingly

"Gomen" Kikyo said

"Anyway, now that you are free of a certain spider man will you be interested in adopting our little dog boy?" Kagome asked

"I have no idea what you just said" Kikyo rolled her eyes at her sisters bizarre double speak

"Will you consider going out with dog boy?" Kagome gave her the quick notes version

"Who?" Kikyo played it innocent

Kagome cackled "Avoiding the question? A sure sign of a yes"

"Maybe"

"I don't envy you much there" Kagome said rolling her eyes "he has the mental capacity of a toddler"

"You might be right" Kikyo mused

"Ne, Kikyo-chan, do you have a thing for Hanyou's?"

"Don't make me hurt you imouto"

***

Sesshoumaru and Kagome had made a pact, they didn't know specifically who Inuyasha had gotten into a fight with, but the fact that Inuyasha avoiding Kouga like the plague the next day coupled with their past altercations meant that the Miko and the Yokai had come to a joint conclusion.

The poor wolf didn't know what he'd gotten himself into.

They cornered him by his locker and he hadn't seen them coming until they were right on top of him and even then Sesshoumaru had to unleash his pant-wettingly terrifying aura to get his attention.

The ookami turned slowly to look into the impassive face of Sesshoumaru and the sweetly smiling face of Kagome. For some reason he couldn't tell who was more terrifying.

"Um... hi?" it came out sounding like a question and his voice broke a few times

"Hey Kouga!" Kagome was cheery and then the look slid from her face like mud from glass and she gazed at him with an expression that would have melted steel like Sesshoumaru's poison.

"Wolf" Sesshoumaru acknowledge smirking at the Miko's no nonsense expression

"If you talk down to Inuyasha ever again, I'll shove your face so far up your ass you won't be able to retrieve it" she threatened low and deeply her eyes flashing

"And I will assist her" Sesshoumaru promised "someone that threatens my pack will be annihilated, do not forget that wolf"

He emphasised the statement by slamming his fist into the locker door next to the wolf's head and released a small amount of his noxious poison.

"Pathetic" Sesshoumaru said as the wolf gulped audibly for even human ear. Sesshoumaru offered his arm to the Miko and they walked away through the sea of agog spectators haughtily. Privately Kagome wondered if Sesshoumaru was rubbing off on her.

They both sniggered as they heard Kouga's knees give out and laughed as he fell to the floor.

"That was fun" Kagome sniggered

"We should do it more often" Sesshoumaru concurred.

A/N: I do not own Inuyasha and I make no profit from this. Thanks to y'all who reviewed on fanfiction dot net: Whitecloud1, Inu-lover-ashlee288, gigglez30, Moonlight X Luna, kyekye, iamyourmaster evil laughter and sesshysister.

Also a big thanks to the people on dokuga...

Connie: teasing is my favourite thing! And Sesshoumaru is the sort of person to adore dishing it out but not be able to take it.

Rei: don't worry there will be another water scene coming, so keep your eyes peeled!

Jaimesesshy: here you go, it's a present for you!

So now we all know I love reviews, we should all review right?


	7. Sesshoumaru is sexy?

Chapter seven: Sesshoumaru is sexy?

Sesshoumaru drummed his fingers on the coffee table in front of him whilst he tried to simultaneously ignore and glare at the provocative assistant. She was a conundrum in herself, existing as an assistant but unable to type due to artificially elongated talons. He was sat on a low slung couch behind the coffee table on top of which was a mug of unwanted rapidly cooling coffee that the assistant had laden him with. She had told him her name but he didn't want to remember.

The office, he could admit, was tastefully and expensively decorated. This was not appeasing Sesshoumaru any, he was being forced to pay off a huge debt by becoming a model and yet this old fool of a friend of his father's was working in luxury.

The office door opened and Sesshoumaru fought to repress his urge to sigh in relief. He really didn't want to subject himself to anymore of this peculiar torture of hapless flirting.

"Sesshoumaru" the older Yokai boomed enthusiastically

"Totosai" Sesshoumaru sounded bored as ever and Totosai rolled his eyes.

"Cold as ever I see" he commented before grinned wickedly at his assistant and ushering Sesshoumaru inside. The two Yokai settled at either side of the mahogany desk and though Totosai was the senior and the owner of the company Sesshoumaru exuded an aura that screamed 'I'm in charge!'"

"So how can I help you?" Totosai asked

"You were in charge of fathers will once he passed?" Sesshoumaru asked

"That is correct" Totosai normally a jovial old coot had been considerably sobered by Sesshoumaru's frostiness and was acting accordingly.

"Then you are aware of our indenture to a Higurashi Megumi-san?" he interrogated

Totosai closed his eyes and sighed, he wasn't quite ready to answer this question yet.

"Yes" he answered hesitantly

"What is it Totosai" Sesshoumaru growled dangerously

"The debt your father left behind was some deal of money" Totosai sighed "and before the day I opened his will I had never even heard of Higurashi Megumi-san, even with knowing your father for the number of years that I did"

"So she was mentioned in the will?" Sesshoumaru asked

"It was his express desire that she be contacted" Totosai nodded "and when she offered the solution to your father's financial dilemma you and your brother were handed over without preamble"

"Interesting" Sesshoumaru pondered

****

"Turn the TV on" Kagome moaned as she flopped down onto the sofa next to the Inu Yokai who was attempting to do his Math homework in the living room due to the fact his idiot half brother was currently whooping whilst playing some dumb video game and neglecting his own ever growing pile of homework.

"You do it" he snapped as she caused his text book to slid off his lap due to her movements "and sit somewhere else, you're annoying me"

She said nothing as she watched as his hand sped across the pad of paper answering mind boggling math questions with an ease that made her envious. Something seemed to click in her brain and she ran upstairs.

He listened as her feet pitter-pattered across the wooden landing floor upstairs. He heard her bedroom door be shoved bluntly out of the way and then it appeared she dumped the contents of a chest or something on the floor before running back across the landing and sliding down the banister and dashing into the room again. A little breathless.

He gazed down at the item she had retrieved from her room and noticed that it was a maths book. "Ne, moon man, help me?"

"No"

"Why?" she whined jumping onto the same sofa as him again and crossing her legs "Onegai, I'll owe you forever"

"No" he grouched attempting to block her out, but to no avail

"Come on moon man, it won't hurt!"

"I have my own homework" he said

"You've nearly finished" she protested

"Leave me"

"ONEGAI!" she yelled and he fought back the urge to cover his ears. He turned to yell at her only to pause in shock as he realised she was barely an inch away from his face glaring at him and trying to will him into complying.

He gazed into her fiery blue eyes and they locked onto each other in a silent battle of wills.

It lasted an eternity.

Before some idiot collapsed over sideways due to the fact she had absentmindedly been holding her breath whilst having the staring competition.

He sighed and ran a hand over his face "I'll help"

"Wise decision," she smirked "if you hadn't agreed I was going to force feed it to you and tell the teacher my dog ate it"

He threw a pillow at her. She dodged the cushiony missile with ease but overestimated her balance and fell from the sofa onto the floor. He rolled his eyes.

***

Inuyasha came down stairs purely to get something to drink before returning to his game but he spotted something that sort of stopped him.

Kikyo's ass.

Or more specifically Kikyo crouched down on all fours with her ass in the air with Rin sat next to her doing the same thing but being not in the least bit tempting. He swallowed hard and brought his traitorous thoughts away from Kikyo and knelt down on her other side.

They were both staring through the banister at the living room where Sesshoumaru was patiently teaching Kagome math.

"Is he actually teaching her?" Inuyasha had to lean in to speak to Kikyo in her ear VERY quietly due to his brothers VERY good hearing. Kikyo nearly jumped out of her skin as she only just realised the Inu Hanyou was beside her.

She nodded and put a finger to her lips as Rin next to her mimicked the action. He rolled his eyes and started to consider the implications if his brother was to catch him spying on him. He was about to get up when Kikyo leant over to say something to him.

She noticed he was leaving and nearly toppled over due to the fact she had been relying on him being there to lean on whilst she talked.

Her grabbed her elbow and helped her steady herself but her flailing left arm hit Rin in the head and she let out a yelp of shock.

Sesshoumaru looked up at the sound of the yelp and eyeballed the now assembled group of spectators. He growled in warning whilst Kagome looked at them in confusion.

"What's with the world's worst ninja's?" she asked

"Speak coherently" Sesshoumaru advised

"Guess what I've got!" Megumi crashed into the apartment like a whirling dervish and ran across to her daughter and Sesshoumaru as the others came down the stairs to see her. The spies were grateful for her intervention, she had inadvertently spared their lives from the wrath of Sesshoumaru.

Sesshoumaru regarded Megumi carefully as they all went to greet her, he still had no idea of how she was connected to his father and not knowing things irritated him.

"Is it ice cream?" Rin asked excitedly

"No not ice cream" Megumi laughed

"Chocolate?" she enquired

"No, let me tell you" Megumi smiled at the young girl

"You need to learn to stop asking Rin to 'guess what'" Kikyo pointed out

"Shhh" Megumi chastised "I was excited. Anyway I have the proof ads that Sesshoumaru worked on!"

She brought a file from her huge bag and pulled an A3 sized poster out with one of the shots of Sesshoumaru across it looking... well... seductive. There really was no other word for it.

Sesshoumaru was torn between being mortified at that emotion being caught by camera and being pleased because Kagome was now blushing. He settled on mortified as Inuyasha started to practically roll around on the floor laughing.

"I didn't know you had it in you" Kikyo said fighting to keep a straight face before dissolving into giggles like Inuyasha before her.

Sesshoumaru growled at them and stalked out of the room and onto the balcony that joined outside the living room window.

"They were only teasing" Kagome's voice came to him as her scent clouded his senses.

"Hn"

"Inuyasha has to do one tomorrow" she said as she came to lean on the railing next to him her hair was not held back and as such it fluttered in the harsh breeze like a wild animal trying to escape. Stray strands whipped him in the face but he made no bid to move away, her closeness and the steady beating of her heart were calming.

"Hn"

"Are you okay with it?" she asked tentatively

"You seemed to like it" he said slyly and he smiled as the heat from her blush graced his senses.

"Shut up" she muttered grouchily. She had been trying to wind him down, but now she was overcome with the urge to wind him back up. "It's going to be on that billboard!" she pointed at the huge billboard across from their building.

He growled in response and she smirked.

***

"Calming down Sesshoumaru didn't go well I take it?" Kikyo enquired as her sister flopped onto the sofa next to Rin whilst Sesshoumaru stalked upstairs with a bark to inform everyone he was going in the shower.

"He pushed my buttons and I got pissed" she shrugged

"Shouldn't say a swear" Rin told her as she continued to plait her own hair into two pigtails.

"Gomen, Rin-chan" Kagome apologised to the younger girl

"You seem to antagonise each other in equal amounts" Kikyo mused as she flicked through Kagome's homework idly "This all seems to be done anyway"

"Yeah" Kagome smiled at the thought of no math detention for once "he's a good tutor I suppose"

"I wouldn't trust that" Inuyasha emerged from the kitchen where he and Rin had been digging for ice cream and had retrieved a tub of rocky road.

"What do you mean?" Kikyo asked in surprise

"He probably taught you wrong on purpose just to spite you" he told Kagome

"Paranoid much?" Kagome asked rolling her eyes and picking up her books "If you'll excuse me I've still got English and Geography homework leering at me from the corner of my room"

"I don't know why you bother" Inuyasha said as he Kikyo and Rin dug into the ice cream

"Because unlike you detention is not something I look forward to" she retorted at the Inu Hanyou before running up the stairs two at a time.

And straight into a towel wearing Inu Yokai.

She sort of bounced off the toned chest of Sesshoumaru and nearly fell over backwards.

Nearly.

Strong arms reached out with blinding speed to stop her, but all she succeeded in doing was pulling the owner of said arms over with her.

She looked up at Sesshoumaru who looked down at her. Blue met gold.

**What an interesting position**. His beast whispered.

He looked down at them and realised he was holding himself on top of her with her hands braced against his chest. The feel of her body beneath his was incredibly tempting. The heat she gave off was intoxicating and once again he nuzzled her neck to breath in her irresistible scent.

"Sesshoumaru!" she whimpered

Reality check.

He snapped out his daze and so fast she didn't even see it happen he was off her and stood two metres away glaring at her.

It was enough to make her wonder if she had just imagined the whole nuzzling thing. After all what person nuzzles someone and then three minutes later looks at them like they killed their first born?

Sesshoumaru that's who. Bastard.

A/N: I don't own Inuyasha! Hope you guys liked it! Thank you for reading and please review!

: thanks go to Inu-lover-ashlee288, LaDy AkEgInU, LadyNica, Whitecloud1, Kaiwren522, Vampire-princesses and Tara-yomitorika.

Dokuga: Thanks go to

jaimesesshy: have another present! With a bow on top!

Connie: thanks! I think... ; )

WhiteRose-Kuruma: people keep saying that, ah well I can never think of decent titles  but at least you liked it!

keren: oh dear, now for an English lesson younger is a comparative therefore it refers to Kagome if I had said youngest which is a superlative the I would have been referring to Rin. Besides that's icky! But you definitely made me laugh!


	8. Pay the Price of Perfection

**Chapter eight: Pay the Price of Perfection**.

"GET OUT!" a piercing scream had the slumbering Sesshoumaru falling out of his bed in shock before jumping to his feet to see what the problem was.

What he encountered however shocked even him. Kagome and Kikyo were stood in the doorway to their room arms folded looking none too pleased in various states of undress. Kikyo was wearing a shirt but no skirt, just her pants and Kagome was wearing some red jeans but not a shirt, just her black bra. Inuyasha was on the floor, one foot twitching, it appeared his head had impacted hard with the east wall and rendered him immobile for a while. His ears were still twitching though, at least he was still conscious.

"Do you have no concept of personal space? Does the word privacy mean nothing to you?" Kagome fumed at the Hanyou "Who in their right mind walks into a teenage girls room without knocking dumbass?"

"A pervert" Kikyo prompted stoking Kagome's ire

"Exactly" she threw her vanity chair at the spread-eagled Hanyou mercilessly "you are the lowest of the low! Everyone is entitled to privacy you know!" she then proceeded to pick up some seven inch stilettos ready to let fly.

"As much as this is entertaining" Sesshoumaru stepped in as he looked down at his brother in disdain "I think he's had enough"

"Why are you here?" Kagome screeched, drawing Sesshoumaru's attention back to her. He raised an eyebrow

_Why is she arguing whilst without a shirt? Is she really that oblivious?_

**Why are you complaining?**

_Shut up_

Kagome took that pause to notice where his eyes were, blushed a red colour that a tomato-mama would be proud of and threw the stilettos at Sesshoumaru instead.

Ducking the deadly Miko launched projectiles he grinned lazily and beat a strategic retreat to his own room, chuckling darkly. Leaving the irate Miko to fume where she stood.

***

"Wake up you lazy Inu!" Kagome yelled slapping Inuyasha around his lazy head with his own discarded shoe.

"Piss off bitch, I'm still tryin' to recover from this morning" was his mumbled reply before he rolled over on the sofa and buried his face into the sofa cushions.

"He's going to get drool on them" Rin told Kagome. She corrected most people on their foul language but she had already learned that it was futile to try and teach the old dog that was Inuyasha new tricks.

"Baka Inu!" Kagome exclaimed "Get up!"

He muttered something incomprehensible into the sofa. Kagome growled and turned to Sesshoumaru who was sat in the egg chair reading as per usual.

"Moon man, lend me a paw here" she ordered

"Since when do I obey you?" he enquired serenely "and besides if you want me to do something for you then being derogatory is not the best way to go about it"

"Do something before I purify your ass" she threatened

"I'd like to see you try" he muttered

"Shut up!" Inuyasha yelled at them all from the sofa "Some of us are trying to sleep you know"

Kagome chuckled, but the noise was completely devoid of humour and Sesshoumaru balked as he sensed her aura for the first time.

He remembered her words 'If you sense our aura it means we're extremely pissed'. Suddenly fearing for the life of the only person alive who was related to him he sprung into action.

He grabbed the sofa on the underside and tipped it, thus shaking the drowsy Hanyou from his perch and dumping him on the hardwood.

"What the fuck?" Inuyasha growled

Rin covered her ears from the uncensored cussing.

"Move your ass Hanyou before I break it for you" Kagome threw a garment bag and a set of car keys at him "Kikyo's shoot begins in three minutes and this is one of the dresses she was supposed to wear but forgot to take."

"Why can't you go?" he grumbled getting up off the floor and bringing the thrown items with him

"I have to take Rin to the D-E-N-T-I-S-T" she spelled it out for him

"I'm ten, not stupid" Rin told Kagome "do I have to go Kagome-neesan?"

"Yep" she said taking Rin's hand firmly in her own

"Why can't he go?" Inuyasha gestured at his half brother

"He has a test tomorrow" Kagome explained "now move your butt"

***

Inuyasha had been dragged into the building by a very frustrated Sango who was waving a blusher brush at him.

"Thank god" Sango said as she dragged him by his collar into the dressed set.

He frowned as people ran past him in various stages of distress, the scent of panic was thick in the air and so he traced the scent of Sakura blossoms back to Kikyo who was stood under the lights of the set looking perfect and aloof as always.

But there was something else about the way she held herself that portrayed another emotion, he just wasn't sure what it was.

She was dressed in black, surprisingly... yeah right. It was her colour. They had constructed a fake balcony around her and she was sat with one leg along the wall her arms across that knee and her head resting on her arms as they positioned the fans so her hair blew out strategically against the backdrop of a city at night.

"Look forlorn Kikyo!" the photographer that had been on task at Sesshoumaru's shoot was directing her today.

"Did you hear?" one of the women from the set whispered to another and Inuyasha's dog ears began to twitch "She asked Naraku-sama out but he said no, he's going out with that famous model Kagura-san now"

"Really?" the other woman laughed "she deserved that slap in the face"

"I know right? She's such a stuck up bitch, always looking down on us just because she's a model and we aren't"

"She never says anything and never shows any emotion, it's so creepy"

"Is she even alive in there?"

Inuyasha started to growl low in his chest at the two women and Sango came to stand next to him and shook her head.

"They always get like this when Kagome-chan isn't here" she confided in the Hanyou

"What do you mean?" he asked in a soft snarl trying to bear in mind that she was not the cause of his anger.

"I mean Kikyo-san is too polite to say anything to them, plus she never seems to hear them. Kagome-chan on the other hand hunts them down and gives them a piece of her mind" she sighed "I'd say something but they'd only poison my lunch when I wasn't looking"

Sango walked away from the Inu Hanyou and smirked. He would get to play Kikyo's knight in fluffy armour... or something like that.

The photographer had apparently gotten all the shots he wanted because he dismissed Kikyo and she turned, still in full dress and makeup and escaped the bitching through a hidden fire escape. Inuyasha didn't see where she went due to the people milling around but his dog like sense of smell led him to the fire escape and up a flight of stairs onto the roof.

He glanced around the roof and realised he couldn't see her, though his nose told him she was there. He walked round and found that she was sat with her legs dangling over the side of the building looking out at the darkening landscape.

"Are you okay?" he asked softly

"Sticks and stones may break my bones but names will never hurt me" she repeated it like it was her own personal mantra, her back still turned towards him "what a crock of shit" she sighed and it hitched a little in her throat. He didn't know what to say, he had little experience in dealing with emotional women and Kikyo being emotional was so foreign it was choking. He simply looked at her, watched her hair lift and swirl around her in the breeze, dancing so forlornly.

"Look" she pointed a long slim pale arm out and he was struck for the first time at how fragile she looked. He'd never noticed it before, with her being the way she was. He followed the direction of her arm and saw another Kikyo. This billboard Kikyo was sassy and confident like the advertisement proclaimed her eyes challenging and fierce. So different to the Kikyo presented to him now.

"I'm Kikyo Higurashi, model extraordinaire, beautiful and unstoppable" she spat the words as if they were vicious poison "I'm not so strong" she whispered she brought her legs away from the edge and folded them into her body wrapping her arms around them and leant her head on her knees. She had never shown so much weakness in front of anyone who wasn't Kagome before and it was strange to her. Her shoulders shook at the cold whipping air.

Inuyasha watched her shuddering hunched shoulders and did something he'd never done before and probably would never do again. He reached out a tanned clawed hand to rest it on her shoulder before leaning down to whisper to her "Me neither"

***

Sesshoumaru was trying to revise for his test, he really was, but they were simply calling out to him. It was not everyday such an opportunity presented itself; Kikyo and the half-breed were at the shoot, Kagome and Rin at the dentists and Megumi nowhere in sight. However her keys were.

Megumi kept a study, and though he had been living in the apartment for many months now he had yet to go inside as she kept it locked and under normal circumstances he respected people's privacy. However since he had learnt more about the circumstances under the will he was almost over come by an unwelcome curiosity. And today she had forgotten her keys.

His hand that was holding the textbook was shaking violently with restraint and his eyebrow was twitching. Eventually he gave up; self restraint was all very well but not at the cost of developing so many bodily ticks.

He glared at the keys for causing his distress and then plucked them from the counter before almost flying up the stairs in his haste to get to the door.

When he actually opened the door however he had to bite back the urge to laugh. Megumi, it appeared was a lot like Kagome with the absolute chaos that ran rampant throughout her study. There was _stuff _everywhere. Coffee cups littered the desk, in a small ring around the bin were crumpled faxes and sheets of paper, her notice board was lost under the inch thick deluge of reminders, business cards were heaped in an ungainly pile underneath a rock that served as a paperweight, swathes of fabric nestle everywhere, the designs were the only things even remotely organised in a thick file that consisted of see-through plastic cases each one was preserved and perfect.

"If I were a disorganised woman where would I put the important documents?" he asked the room, which of course provided no answer.

He riffled through the room carefully, every time he touched something it seemed to fall down around his pointy ears and he was having a hard time not tidying up as he was want to do.

Eventually he found some semblance of a clue in a drawer that seemed bottomless. It was a small scrap of paper that wouldn't have demanded his attention had it not been for lingering traces of his fathers scent. He pulled it out, it read:

_I'm sorry about the way this turned out. Maybe someday you can forgive me. I live in hope._

_Yours, Touga _

He frowned at the cryptic note, all it really revealed was that Megumi and his father had known each other and that his father had done something to upset her at one point. It was not dated but he could tell it was old, his father's scent was only there in trace amounts and Megumi's scent was distorted from what he assumed to be age.

It was when he made his way to the carefully disguised filing cabinet that he nearly lost his nerve, it was locked and so he could not look inside she had left the key for the door and for nothing else, what he was interested in was the briefcase atop it, that was distinctly out of place even camouflaged as it was under piles of paper.

He put his hand on the handle and was about to pull it down when he smelt Rin and Kagome. He stiffened and then turned around to see them staring at him, conveniently forgetting his grip on the unlocked suitcase he pulled it with him and the papers inside flew at the girls.

Kagome grimaced in surprise as her own birth certificate hit her in the face before fluttering to the floor.

"What are you doing moon-man?" Rin asked as she followed Kagome and began to pick up the documents up whilst Sesshoumaru stood there in some kind of shock.

"I'd like to know too" Kagome said raising an eyebrow at him

"I was looking for something" he hedged sheepish at being caught

"Whatever" Kagome said shoving the documents back inside before ushering them both back outside.

She waited until Rin had Sesshoumaru engaged downstairs before wandering back to the door. She pulled a scrap of paper from her pocket and wrote the word 'protect' on it before slicing her finger with a corner allowing some of her blood to touch the writing. The writing glowed gold for a second before she folded the paper as small as she could and tucked it into the doorjamb. It would keep the nosy Yokai out she figured. She was very fierce about everyone having their own personal space and whilst she suspected nothing from Sesshoumaru in the way of evil intent she appreciated her mother's privacy.

Sesshoumaru tensed as he felt the slight flare of Miko energy before it subsided, he realised the girl had warded the room and smiled, at least he could detect no distrust in her aura. It would appear she was merely as adamant about privacy as she had been that morning.

She appeared at the foot of the stairs and skipped across the room to sit in his lap, as was the norm. He attempted to remove her and she clung on, it was a ritual of sorts.

"So why were you in there?" she asked

"You mother has my social security card" he said lying fluidly as he was able "I needed it"

"Oh" she pursed her lips "you shouldn't have just gone in there though"

"I'm not used to boundaries" he told her truthfully "back when I lived with my father there was no place I could not enter"

"I guess I understand" she said as Rin pulled out her English homework and sat down at the desk. "but privacy means a lot when you're in a mixed household, back then it was just three guys, now you have to account our needs too" she grinned "privacy is about respecting a person"

"You make a point" he acknowledged

"I'm not all tea parties and opium" she rolled her eyes

"What?"

"You mean you didn't get that?" she demanded incredulously "it was a blatant Alice in Wonderland reference"

"Of course" he rolled his eyes

"What I meant was I'm not always completely crazy you know" she argued

"Sure"

"You're not very nice"

"So they tell me"

"Don't worry, the gremlins are nasty to everyone" she consoled

"Why are you blathering about gremlins?" he asked raising an eyebrow

"You did not specify who 'they' were" she told him "so I presumed you were talking about gremlins"

"She's obsessed with them" Rin commented

"They are mythical" he told the slightly delusional teenager currently taking over his lap

"So are demons" she replied "and yet I'm sitting on you"

They all looked up as the door opened and Kikyo and Inuyasha walked in looking slightly forlorn but strangely content.

"You look like you need ice-cream" Kagome commented springing from Sesshoumaru's lap to go rummage through the freezer.

"What happened?" Rin asked

"Keh, nothing" Inuyasha shrugged flopping onto the sofa like his bones had suddenly turned to liquid, Kikyo joined him soon after.

"We're fine" Kikyo assured her

"Here, it's vanilla, but it's all we had" Kagome dumped it ruthlessly on Inuyasha's lap making him squeal like a little girl.

"Bitch"

"Puppy"

"Who you calling puppy?" he demanded slipping easily back into his usual angst ridden persona

"You obviously, if I was talking about Sesshoumaru I wouldn't have a head anymore"

"You surprise me by your moments of insight" Sesshoumaru smirked and Kagome stuck her tongue out.

The door opened again, but this time with such force that it bounced off the wall and nearly closed on Megumi.

She skipped into the room happily and ran up to them "Guess what!" she was a hyper child

"What?" Kagome asked grinning

"For our new Essence of Nature range we are going to be in the forest!" she enthused

They all looked at her blankly "And?" Kagome ventured

"The local hot spring owner had agreed to let you four stay for the three days, free of charge! Isn't that great, you'll be surrounded by nature and it saves having to keep driving up and down for three days. I guess we're lucky that Myoga-san knew your father" she gestured at Inuyasha and Sesshoumaru "he agreed to let you stay for free!"

"Hot spring?" Kagome's eyes lit up "really?"

"Yep" said Megumi

"You're telling me we are stuck in a hot spring for three days with them?" Kikyo frowned "but they're both perverts"

"Therein lies the fun" Sesshoumaru murmured

Inuyasha, the only one who heard grinned in anticipation "Hells yeah"

A/N: O.O Sesshoumaru Inuyasha naughty! He he he, I do not own Inuyasha! Anyway hope you enjoyed it things are moving forwards little by little to my little drama! Kukukukuku! Anyway please review!

With thanks to those on fanfiction: TheAnonymous, Whitecloud1, Inu-lover-aslee-288, Sesshomaru's Beautiful Kristin, XxMadhatter-NojokerxX, dangitsesshomaru and Moonlight X Luna.

Also on dokuga:

Ameire: here ya go, don't say I never give you anything! The pics were from the shoot when she baited him, but he got her flustered so she couldn't think of any good comebacks!

WhiteRose-Kurama: A hotspring scene is coming soon! Thanks for the review and I agree with the fanart thing!

Kayla: He will be wearing less than a towel very soon! Don't you worry!

jaimesesshy: would you like another present?

Debra Timson: here ya go

AmiOtaku: the inspiration behind this was bizarre I was sat there reading someone's crack fic and they were complaining about how the clearing scene where Kagome sees Inuyasha and Kikyo together and runs to Sesshoumaru is overdone so I sat there determined to find something that hadn't been done and this popped into my head! Thanks for the review!

Looking back on that I probably overused the exclamatory in the responses huh? Oh well the fic is over no complaining about my punctuation.

I felt that a bit of sad bonding was due between Inuyasha and Kikyo so they had their moment and Sesshoumaru is still snooping around, curiosity killed the cat but he seems to think he's immune. Whatever, from a slightly more serious chapter to a completely pointless hot spring chapter next time! Ja ne Aimee-chan.


	9. Into the Wilderness with ye!

Chapter 9: Into the Wilderness with ye!

"We truly are in the middle of nowhere" Kagome said as she spun in a circle admiring the surrounding trees, swinging her satchel from an arm and nearly braining a passing Sesshoumaru with it. He gave her a derisive glare and continued to amble on. She had no idea where she was going; none of them did, except Sesshoumaru who was leading with a loathing attitude.

"Hn" Kikyo did a contrite impersonation of Sesshoumaru as her skirt got caught in some brambles, effectively trapping her. She didn't do anything, just glared at them as if they'd wither under her stare and Kagome giggled. Inuyasha rolled his eyes and freed her skirt with a neat clip from his claws. He glanced up at Kagome and balked.

"Hey, wench look out!" he shouted

Kagome, who had been walking backwards along the path in order to watch Kikyo's antics, widened her eyes at the Hanyou in surprise before she fell over the root that was sticking out of the ground rather comically and landed on her ass. Her hands flailed out and she inadvertently stuck one into a knot of brambles, hissing as her delicate flesh tore and she began to bleed.

Sesshoumaru paused as he smelt the first traces of her blood, his beast panicking as he caught the scent of something that his beast felt they should never smell. He turned to see her wince as she retracted her arm from the bramble trap.

He was by her in the next moment "You are a clumsy one Miko" he commented

"I'm not clumsy, invisible gremlins keep tripping me up" she muttered

"Again with the gremlins" he raised a brow and yanked her back onto her feet again, slightly more gentle with her than he would have been with anyone else. Once he was certain she was on her feet and unlikely to fall on her ass again he gripped her arm above the cuts and looked at intently at them. They weren't particularly deep but they were dirty. "Did you pack anti-bacterial wipes?"

"Um... no" she said frowning at her torn up arm

"You won't be able to do the shoot with a torn up arm" Kikyo frowned

"There is a way around that" Sesshoumaru stated magnanimously

"No way" Inuyasha whispered as Sesshoumaru bent his head to her wounds and began to lick them clean and close them also.

"Ah!" Kagome jumped as his tongue encountered her flesh and then started wriggling as he started to lick; it was halfway between tickling her and feeling strangely nice. So in her indecision she settled on wriggling manically in his unforgiving hold on her arm in between muffling her whimpers. She had no idea what she was whimpering for, either to get him to continue or to stop she had no clue. But whimper she did.

Sesshoumaru pulled away and Kagome's eyes widened as her blue eyes locked with his now red ones. He stared at her for a moment before gold swirled within the incandescent depths, claiming back its territory. "Let's go" he said locking his hand around her wrist he dragged her behind him.

"Hey, let go, I can walk you know" she protested as he dragged her as one would drag a sack of potatoes.

"Obviously not" he pointed out causing her to give her own rendition of an angry growl which only succeeded in making Sesshoumaru smirk.

Kikyo was about to head off after them when she noticed that her Hanyou companion was seemingly comatose and just sort of staring in front of him blankly.

"What's wrong?" she asked waving a hand in front of his face.

He blinked a few times and looked at her blankly "Huh?"

"I said what's wrong?" she asked tilting her head to one side

"Nothing much" he muttered before picking up the pace again. There was no way he was going to tell Kikyo the implications of what Sesshoumaru had just done. That little trick was not widely known outside the Inu clan and it was certainly not used on just anyone. Mostly it was only used on mates or on the person they were courting. Not that Inuyasha hadn't begun to suspect that Sesshoumaru felt that way, but this was actual confirmation and it had momentarily stunned him.

Sesshoumaru paused, causing Kagome to nearly barrel into his back and loose her balance.

"Why'd you stop?" she asked

"We are here" he told her bluntly like the answer should have been obvious.

She peeked out from behind his back and looked at the old fashioned hot springs.

"So cute!" she squealed causing her Yokai companion to wince

"How can a building be cute?" he questioned

"Easily" she told him rolling her eyes

They approached the traditional Japanese styled Hot springs resort and were greeted by an elderly, balding man stood on the porch dressed in a yukatta.

"Master Sesshoumaru I presume" the old man said "you remind me greatly of your father"

"I am Sesshoumaru" he acknowledged "are you Myoga?"

"Yes" the old man nodded and turned to smile a little gap-toothily at Kagome "You must be one of the Higurashi sisters!"

"Kagome" she allowed

"You do resemble your mother, but your eyes are indeed a rarity"

"You know my mother? She did not give that impression when she spoke of you" Kikyo voiced as she and Inuyasha joined the three.

"You must be Kikyo and yes I did know your mother, she is an old friend" he smiled "though the last time I saw her she was only this tall" he indicated around a metre with his hand he shook his head wistfully "Ah, yes, your room follow me"

They turned to follow Myoga and something clicked in Kagome's brain "Did he just say room? As in singular?"

Kikyo gave her a worried look before they rushed to catch up with their friends.

"Here you are" the room was quite large at 30 tatami with three separate rooms and a bathroom included. The girls breathed a joint sigh of relief and Myoga smiled at them.

"I thought you said it was one room, this is huge!" Inuyasha exclaimed in a disappointed tone

"Why do you sound disappointed?" Kikyo asked sweetly and Inuyasha tensed, for Kikyo to be injecting that much emotion into her words could not bode well for him. He turned round to see both Kagome and Kikyo glaring at him, each equally pissed and murderous looking. He darted a nervous look over to his brother whom merely grinned at him as he continued to talk to the old Myoga.

Sesshoumaru's smirk grew wider as he heard the thump of Kagome's formidable right hook before there was silence. No more rambling from the Hanyou, it seemed Kagome had put a stop to that.

Kikyo rolled out her futon and dumped her bag next to it stretching her arms abover her head Kagome followed suit.

"This is our part" Kagome gestured

"You're dividing the room?" Sesshoumaru asked "do you take me for a pervert?"

"Well he certainly is" they all looked down at the floored Hanyou, still face down as she had left him "It might be hereditary"

He frowned "there was me thinking all hope had been lost"

"What?2

"You used the word hereditary, I wasn't aware you knew words of more than one syllable" he replied tossing his hair

She fought the urge to pull the gorgeous silver locks and instead fantasised about cutting them off and perhaps using them to make a Sesshoumaru fur jacket. The idea was oddly tempting.

"What's she fantasising about?" Inuyasha asked, partially recovered and looking at Kagome warily

"I don't know" Kikyo looked disconcerted "but the goofy grin usually signifies pain on someone else's part"

"I can still hear you guys" she sang happily before snapping out of her daydream "We have an entire half a day until the shoot begins tomorrow so to the hot springs!"

She jumped up grabbing her yukata and Kikyo before they rushed away. Sesshoumaru watched them go into a hot spring and grinned thanking the god of perverts for Kagome's thoughtlessness. They were the only guests in the inn until the other model and the photographer and such came tomorrow. He walked back into the room and smirked grabbing his own yukata.

"What's with the smirk?" Inuyasha asked

"You shall see" his smirk widened

The hot spring was old but still as inviting as ever, the steam rising of its surface into the cool air enticed Kagome and she gave in. She shuddered slightly as the biting cold made her nipples stand on end as if standing to attention; 'ouch I'm cold'. She slid into the heated depths gratefully.

"This is amazing" Kagome said leaning back against the rock, her towel discarded on the side of the spring.

Kikyo slipped in next to her sister and sighed in bliss "It's so amazing, I can't remember the last time I was in one of these"

"I can, we were fourteen it was our birthday you stayed in too long and fainted from the heat" Kagome reminded her

Kikyo wrinkled up her nose "So did you"

"Let me bask in one of your few shortcomings sister, it is not often I am allowed to, you seem to have no problem bullying me about mine" Kagome told her

Kikyo splashed her gently "I seem to have been replaced in my duties by a certain demon however"

"I wish you'd take them back, I don't have as many comebacks against him. His eyes scramble my brain" Kagome admitted

"Are you infatuated dear sister?"

"Are you found of your head?"

"I'll take that as a yes" Kikyo chuckled softly and then the two Mikos with their backs to the doors behind them stiffened as they opened. They spun sharply around to see both Sesshoumaru and Inuyasha, clad only in towels walk up to the side of the spring.

Kagome squeaked and fell back into the spring and Kikyo hid behind her hair.

"I think my brain melted" Kagome commented upon resurfacing and proving that they truly were there. Kikyo nodded her agreement.

Sesshoumaru was still wearing his wicked smirk and then he abruptly dropped his towel. Kikyo who still wasn't looking failed to react and just kept staring at the water like it would swallow her.

Kagome on the other hand squeaked again and turned back around, abruptly turning bright red and wondering what the hell was happening as both Inu brothers joined the sisters in the spring.

Kikyo was shocked out of her strange comatose denial as Inuyasha took up residency beside her and she shrieked as her sister had done before making sure her breasts were actually properly concealed below the water.

Kagome on the other hand was still trying to get over seeing Sesshoumaru clad only in a smirk. She didn't know he had stripes there, she'd seen him only in a towel before but now she had discovered exactly what those twin stripes pointed at and she was having problems wrenching her mind from the gutter. She could imagine how much harder this quest to stop being Hentai was going to be when droplets of water were caressing the tones sleek muscles... she desperately tried to yank her mind back on track but once again failed miserably.

Sesshoumaru smirked obviously pleased by her reaction to him and then winced when she seemed to recover herself enough to scream.

"What the hell are you two doing in here?" she demanded jumping to her feet in outrage "get out!"

"We have every right to be here" Sesshoumaru said haughtily "it is a Konyouku* after all"

"This is a mixed sex hot spring?" she squeaked

"You should really check where you are running" he pointed out

She gave him a scathing look and he just looked at her wondering when she was going to realise. Not that he minded the view he was currently enjoying was not without it's perks, those dusky hardened nipples being only one of many delights.

She seemed to realise what he was looking at for she very abruptly sat back down and glared at him, her arms folded defensively over her chest.

Sesshoumaru turned his attention away from her momentarily as he realised his brother and Kikyo were being silent. Whilst for Kikyo silence was the norm for Inuyasha it was blatantly not.

They were both sat there, staring at the water in front of them, blushing like fools. Apparently after getting in the springs any confidence Inuyasha may have possessed had abruptly bolted at a rate of knots.

"Is it normal for Inuyasha to be that colour red?" Kagome asked

"Probably not" Sesshoumaru commented

"Well I've had enough of this weirdness" Kagome proclaimed frowning as she realised her towel was too far away to just grab it and run. "Close your eyes so I can leave?" she said to Sesshoumaru

Her heart sank when she saw the smirk that had settled upon his features she had a funny feeling he wasn't going to let her out.

"And if I refuse?" he asked raising a brow and smirking

"Aw, come on that's not fair" she wondered if throwing a temper tantrum would help her situation any. She doubted it but damn it was tempting.

He looked at her stonily and she wondered how exactly she was going to get out of this one.

"Please?"

"You are free to leave Kagome" he told her smiling "as I am free to stay here"

"You're not very nice" she pouted

"Thank you" he said still unrelenting as he folded his arms. Kagome glanced back at Kikyo for help to find that she still hadn't moved. Kagome sighed and splashed her sister.

"Now is not the time for going into shock!" she scolded

Kikyo shook her head and sort of came to her senses. Regardless of being the more confident of the twins she was incredibly nervous when naked and as such had been reduced to a Kikyo shaped wreck.

"Why are they in here?" she questioned in her usual 'could care less' tone.

"It's a Konyouku" Kagome explained

"You didn't check this before hand?" her voice was dripping in sarcasm

"No" Kagome sighed "but neither did you!"

"I was kidnapped"

"You still messed up, only it was passively" Kagome insisted worrying her lip between her teeth and turning over possible escape routes in her mind. Unfortunately there weren't any.

They all jumped in shock as a splash, then a bubbling gurgling noise was heard. They turned back to the forgotten Inuyasha who was face down in the hot spring water. All eyebrows were raised simultaneously.

"He fainted" Kikyo said disbelief evident in her tone

"It was too much for his tiny mind" said Kagome sniggering as she grabbed him by the scruff of his hair and pulled his face up and out of the water so that the Hanyou didn't die. A wicked gleam entered her eyes and she turned slowly and stealthily, keeping everything of interest under the water at all times, she walked over to Sesshoumaru towing the Hanyou by his hair.

"What are you doing Miko?" Sesshoumaru demanded

"Think fast" she ordered heaving the Hanyou at him with an almighty splash.

Kikyo sprung from the spring faster than the splash died down and wrapped herself securely in the towel. Kagome caught her thrown towel from her sister and rose from the water with it wrapped around her. Ignoring the glaring eyes of Sesshoumaru.

He watched Kagome's ass as it disappeared through the sliding doors and let out a disgruntled sigh as he yanked Inuyasha out of the water by a tuft of hair. Never let it be said that Sesshoumaru never looked out for his brother...

***

They sighed in twinned contentment and looked up at the moon dappled sky.

Kikyo dropped her towel and Kagome raised a brow.

"What's with the swim suit onee-chan?"

"There be perverts about" Kikyo imitated something like a cowboy and Kagome giggled

"But you're wearing a string bikini, hardly the least revealing choice" Kagome pointed out

"But it covers the most important areas" Kikyo pointed out "I brought one for you too"

Kagome made a noise that was a cross between a groan and a sigh. "But if it's yours my ass will hang out!" she protested

Kikyo rolled her eyes "No it won't; besides I brought yours"

"Because you didn't want me to stretch one of yours" Kagome replied flippantly

"I'm not going to try and convince you otherwise, I've been trying that for my entire life" Kikyo knocked gently on the side of her little sisters head "you need your head looking at"

Kagome rolled her eyes and quickly and succinctly donned her swimming suit.

"I'm glad we decided to ditch them" Kikyo said as she slipped into the water

"Yeah, it's not like they realised we were there anyhow" Kagome grinned and did a strange imitation of a breast stroke across the spring that wasn't large enough to swim in. "Who knew a Yokai and a Hanyou could get so competitive over Ping-Pong?"

"I lost interest when the ball started moving too fast for human eyes to discern it" Kikyo nodded and raised a brow "you sure this isn't a Konyouku?"

Kagome stuck her tongue out at her sister who raised her eyebrow further and then dissolved into giggles as Kagome pounced upon her and began tickling her older sister to within an inch of her life.

Crack. The sound rung through the air and they both jumped in shock. They turned slowly to see a cat yowl at them as it sprung from the overhanging Sakura tree and away.

Three seconds later the cracked branch hit the floor with a groaning thump and even though it was anticipated the twins flinched again.

"That scared me half to death" Kagome confided slowly, pressing a palm over her rapidly beating heart.

"Yeah"

A twig snapped. But this time it wasn't a cat.

Sesshoumaru and Inuyasha, currently located on the other side of the hot spring tensed as they heard the synchronised scream of the Higurashi twins...

A/N:I still don't own Inuyasha, but a girl can dream. Thanks for reading and please review.

*A Konyouku is a mixed hot spring just so you know!

Thanks go to these people on : XxHaku-Spirited-Away-RoseXxXx, Whitecloud1, Moonlight X Luna and darkpsychoqueen

And on thanks to yashkags4eva

On Dokuga big thanks goes to WhiteRose-Kurama: enough perverted stupid-ness to satisfy you? No? Me neither there will be more to come!

jaimesesshy aren't you lucky? You get ANOTHER present! Am I getting repetitive?

Debra Timson: Thanks for kicking my ass and getting me to finish typing this *hands you a cookie*

Ameire: here you go my friend, go forth and feast!


	10. Perverts that go bump in the night

Chapter 10: Perverts that go bump in the night

The brothers tore through the small building, both in perfect synchronicity for once as they attempted to get to the Higurashi sisters. When they burst out into the female only hot springs they were stunned to stillness.

A dark haired man was laying face down in the water of a recently vacated hot spring. Kagome stood over him in a dark blue swim suit looking menacing and holding a huge tree branch like a baseball bat. Kikyo stood behind her with an eyebrow raised, peering down at the unconscious looking man.

"What happened?" Inuyasha demanded

"Kagome apprehended a pervert" Kikyo informed him "with a tree branch"

"Hn" Sesshoumaru acknowledged as with gentle hands he wrenched the tree branch from between Kagome's clenched fingers, her knuckles were white. He wanted the branch away from her before she hurt herself with it. "You realise if you leave him like that he's going to drown, correct?"

"So?" Kagome said petulantly, pouting slightly

"So, you cannot get away with murder" he pointed out

She took offense "Neither can you!"

"I wouldn't be so sure Miko" he flashed his gleaming lengthy canines and she fought the irrational (or not) urge to shudder.

"Just get him out!" Inuyasha barked

Sesshoumaru sighed in a put upon way and peeled the unconscious man from the surface of the gently steaming water, dumping him with no care on the side of the spring.

"His smile... it's kind of perverted...even when he's asleep" Kikyo commented warily

Kagome walked over to kneel by the dark haired male's side and prodded him with a small stick she had procured from somewhere or other.

"Maybe he's dead" she suggested over her shoulder looking innocently at Sesshoumaru.

"Hopefully not Miko, you would be prosecuted for manslaughter" Sesshoumaru reminded her smirking slightly "besides he is still breathing"

Kikyo knelt on the other side of the fallen man and examined him. "Yeah, he's definitely breathing"

"Mores the pity" Kagome said wrinkling her nose.

Sesshoumaru watched disinterestedly as the man began to twitch. He was waking up. He was growling a second later however when the man decided it would be a good idea to grab both Kagome's and Kikyo's bottoms and squeeze.

"Ah!" Kagome screeched and jumped up, falling over backwards into Sesshoumaru who captured her by her elbows and held her to his chest, all the time glaring at this male.

Kikyo on the other hand snarled at him in an endearingly human way and was torn away from the groping man by an irate Inuyasha.

"So now I'm thinking manslaughter was a good idea" Kagome commented as the man sat up rubbing his aching head.

"Who are you?" Kikyo demanded glaring at the man

He winced and tried to look innocent "I apologise fair lady, I did not mean to alarm you, I am but a humble employee here at this hot spring"

"You work here?" Sesshoumaru's eye brow went up

"Yes, I am Miroku, Myoga-san had employed me here" he smiled charmingly

"He employed a pervert?" Kagome asked scathingly

He looked innocently wounded, but he wasn't fooling anyone "Of course not my dear, it was a simple misunderstanding"

"Another one of those?" an amused voice questioned and they turned to look at Myoga who had appeared in the doorway that led back inside the building.

"Myoga-san I was just—" Miroku began but Myoga held up a hand to stop him.

"I've heard it all before" he shook his head "how about you get inside and stop causing chaos?"

"Of course" Miroku said sheepishly before turning and winking at the twins who gave him the evil eye.

"Let's go to bed" Kagome sighed "I think the springs are cursed for us today"

"Bed?" Inuyasha's ears perked up

Kikyo raised a brow "And where's your mind right now?"

"She's right, haul yourself out of the gutter now mister" Kagome cautioned

"Why is it always me you two yell at?" Inuyasha demanded as they made their collective way to the room "The ice prince is plenty perverted too!"

Kikyo and Kagome blinked and then looked at Sesshoumaru who smirked crookedly. Kagome shivered slightly and Kikyo giggled.

"But he isn't as dumb about it as you are, it's harder to tease him" Kikyo pointed out

"Yep" Kagome nodded

"Plus you're scared of him" Inuyasha complained

"I'm not afraid" Kikyo grinned "It's Kagome who should be afraid, very afraid"

Kagome gulped and kicked her sister in the shins and Sesshoumaru's smirk turned predatory as he watched the younger Miko. She shuddered and gave him a look that was supposed to say 'stop that' but instead merely read like a deer caught in head lights. The smirk grew wider.

"There will be no shenanigans tonight" Kikyo ordered as they settled into their futons, she glanced coldly at Sesshoumaru "And I'm talking to you too moon man"

His golden eyes illuminated in the darkness of the room seemed to smirk at her, before they turned to look at Kagome who was studiously pretending to be asleep. Those eyes flashed red for a moment before fading to darkness.

Sesshoumaru patiently waited until the others fell asleep and with the minimum of fuss and the maximum of grace slipped from the room to find the old man Myoga.

***

Kagome woke up blearily and swatted at the light fruitlessly. It refused to relent and leave her alone. She sat up and flipped her bed head from her eyes.

And then she froze when she saw Sesshoumaru. The room was vacant except for the two of them and she was hoping that Kikyo wasn't too far away. But that was besides the point. Her point was that Sesshoumaru was sat there with no shirt on reading something or other.

He wasn't actually reading, rather he was processing the information that Myoga had parted with last night. Not that the information had truly been all that enlightening however. It seemed that his father and Kagome's mother had been childhood friends. But if that was the case then why had he never met the Higurashi family before?

"Where's Kikyo?" Kagome asked, her voice slightly raspy

"Hot spring" he said

"Inuyasha?"

"Hot spring"

"The same one?"

"I do not care"

"Right" she said stretching her arms above her head she raised a brow when he smirked "What?"

"Perhaps you should check your attire" he suggested

She glanced down at herself; she had been wearing her usual pyjamas of shorts and a strappy sleeved shirt. Now, however, the straps on her shirt had slid down on her shoulders revealing her breasts to all who cared to look. Which of course meant Sesshoumaru was ogling her, but in an aloof way of course.

"AH!" she threw a pillow at him "Hentai!"

Chuckling darkly he caught the pillow before it hit his head. "Nice try little Miko"

"Whatever" she grouched as she pulled her shirt into its rightful position with a huff and an indignant toss of her hair.

***

Kagome and Sesshoumaru sat on a boulder as Kikyo and Inuyasha did their shoot without too much fuss. Inuyasha had whined slightly, but then that was usual.

"I wonder where Kana is" Kagome mused

"Kanna?" Sesshoumaru asked

"The other model who was supposed to be working with us today" Kagome glanced at her watch "she's a little late"

"Why are you concerned?" he asked

"She's an old friend of ours, silent like Kikyo but generally a good person. She's an amazing model" she paused thoughtfully "some say she'll become as big as Hime one day"

"Hime?"

"You don't know Hime?" Kagome was incredulous "she's the biggest most in demand model in Japan even though she's in her early thirties she's constantly out doing some of the younger ones"

"Hn"

"I'm sorry" she grinned ruefully "of course you wouldn't know"

"Quite, I was only recently coerced into enduring this torture"

"It's hardly torture" she commented

"Hn" he rolled his eyes "that is an opinion and as such us subjective to the person"

She giggled

"Kagome" Sango appeared beside the couple looking mildly harassed, her hair was sticking up at odd angles and she was worrying her bottom lip in between her teeth.

"What's wrong?" Kagome enquired mildly

"Kanna's still not here" she threw her hands up in exasperation "this is taking being 'fashionably late' too far"

"Do not panic" Sesshoumaru instructed

"And why not?" she demanded petulantly

"I am here" came a flat, almost whispered monotone.

Sango spun to see Kanna stood behind her dressed in her usual white. She had tied her shoulder length hair into a loose top knot and her dark eyes were as they always were, eerily empty.

Sango was undeterred by her apparent boredom at the situation.

"You're late, extremely late" Sango scolded "get changed, get to makeup, now!"

Kanna's emotionless eyes slid past Sango, took in Sesshoumaru with a disinterested air and finally landed on Kagome.

"Did you design?" the whispered question was hard to hear over the commotion on the shoot.

"Yeah, I made yours white especially for you, but they have a more 'woodland nymph' feel than the other pieces I've designed"

"Very well" she acknowledged before gliding smoothly away

"How do you handle her?" Sango asked in disbelief "she just ignores me"

"I'm used to her" Kagome shrugged "understanding her attitude helps me cope with Moon Man here" she chucked her thumb in the approximate direction of Sesshoumaru and Sesshoumaru growled. She ignored him "besides, I'd rather deal with Kanna than with her sister, Kagura"

"She still doesn't like you?" Sango asked

"She hates Kikyo because Naraku likes Kikyo and Kagura wants Naraku" Kagome wrinkled her nose

"But aren't Kagura and Naraku a couple?" Sango asked

"Yeah, but Naraku has always wanted Kikyo and he's only going out with Kagura because Kikyo jilted him. So Kagura is still jealous" Kagome sighed

"She's always a bitch whenever I have to do her makeup" Sango sneered "perfectly nice to anyone of importance though"

"Tell me about it" Kagome rolled her eyes

Sango was beckoned and she growled at them before turning back to Kagome "Whatever, you guys are finished here, you don't need to hang around. Go to a hot spring or something"

"Are you kidding?" Kagome asked in mock horror "with a perverted guy working here" she gestured at Miroku who was attempted to charm Kana (she was staring at him blankly) "and Moon Man lurking without Kikyo to watch my back. I'll get taken advantage of"

"People don't take advantage of you, you take advantage of the good will of others" Sango rolled her eyes and her name was hollered again "I don't really care what you do, scat!"

They turned and walked off towards the hot spring together "don't you think she shooed us away as if we were dogs?" Kagome asked folding her arms in a disgruntled manner.

"No dog would listen to her" Sesshoumaru scoffed

"Huh?"

"Her tone was wrong, no dog would respond to her as their alpha"

"Oh" she paused and then squinted at him for a while as if trying to read his thoughts through his fae ear.

"What?" he asked tersely after she succeeded in goading him into conversation via staring.

"You're a dog demon right?"

"Yes"

"So do you see the world like that, in dog terms I mean?"

"It is not dissimilar" he allowed

"So how do you see it?" she interrogated

"The hierarchy of an Inu pack is different to the Yokai equivalent" he told her as they set up residence on a low lying boulder.

"How so?"

"The basics apply; there is an alpha male and an alpha female and betas likewise. But as we are not humans, regardless of what some humans think, a Yokai pack normally has elders"

"Huh?"

"In a wild Inu pack once an alpha male is defeated by another male that alpha male is either killed or ostracised from the pack" he explained "with demons the old alpha retains the position inside the pack in return for their loyalty and knowledge. The elders have the authority to overrule everyone except the alpha male of the pack"

"Oh" she processed the information "sounds reasonable" there was a pause "you don't pee on trees do you?"

The eyebrow went up and she giggled "Yokai are territorial, but we feel no need to scent mark by urination. We simply mark by touch, if we value something then we cover it in as much of our scent as possible and if the thing is a person we can fuse a small amount of our youki into the skin of that person"

"Cool" she said biting her bottom lip in-between her teeth. Sesshoumaru almost groaned at the sight. She had leant backwards against the rock, her head leaning back, making her back arch and her breasts push against the confines of her shirt.

There was a pinging noise inside Sesshoumaru's mind as one of the last restraints on his precious self control pinged away.

"You constantly sit on my lap" he pointed out

"Yeah, and?" she missed the predatory smirk that flitted across his features.

"In Yokai terms it is almost as if you are scent marking me as yours" he smirked at the gobsmacked expression on her face

"B-but I'm not!" she yelped

"Does it matter?" he asked stalking towards her, "you entice my beast"

She gulped as he put his strong arms either side of her seat on the boulder, effectively caging her in.

"It is also considered disobedience" he said as he lowered his head to that their eyes were level, his lips inches away from her own. She became fixed on them, they were so close. She could meet them with her own if only she moved slightly. Not that she was going to do that of course, she was trapped like a deer in headlights.

"Why?" she was annoyed by the breathless quality to her voice

"Sitting above me is being dominant over you alpha" he purred

"Who says you're my alpha?" a statement that was meant to sound strong faltered slightly.

"I do" he whispered into the crook of her neck.

"Um..." she said from her slightly powerless position pinioned in-between his arms. He smirked again into the crook of her neck and fingered the coil of hair that was resting there.

"What's wrong?" he asked dipping his head slightly to rest an ear against the column of her throat. "You're pulse is fast, Kagome"

"Um..." she mumbled as she privately cursed her loss of coherent speech

"And" his lips came up to whisper in her ear as one of his claws traced the contours of her throat. "You seem to have forgotten how to speak" he breathed.

He was so close now that her breasts were pressed against his hard chest. She swallowed hard and her bit down on the inside of her mouth to keep herself from licking her lips.

"Haven't" she managed to mumble, her stubborn and defiant streak making itself know.

He chuckled "Really?" he was so close to her now that when he spoke his lips brushed against hers ever so slightly. She leaned into them subconsciously and he growled in triumph as his lips closed gently over hers.

At first he was hesitant, letting her reject him if she wanted to, but as she responded he smirked and pulled her bottom lip between his teeth, biting gently. His tongue came out and gently traced the curve of her bottom lip, asking for entrance, which she granted without preamble. His tongue coaxing hers into action. One of his hands moved to her hair, knotting in the ebony strands and preventing escape as the other held her hip possessively.

He allowed her the oxygen she obviously needed and pulled away from her lips only to kiss down the column of her throat where his claw had traced earlier. She titled her head back even without encouragement from the hand tangled in her hair and his beast growled its pleasure at the sight of her vulnerable throat presented to them. He placed open mouthed kisses on her pale throat. Gently infusing some of his youki into her skin with the tips of his claws as he dragged one hand over the exposed part of her stomach where her shirt had come away from the waist band of her skirt.

"Well, isn't this cosy" came the bitingly sarcastic tones of some woman. This was enough to wake Kagome from her pleasure induced fog and she blinked a few time before pushing Sesshoumaru back off her. She glanced over his shoulder at the intruder and groaned.

Kagura.

"What do you want?" Kagome asked, more than a little irritated as Sesshoumaru growled softly at the overly hostile Wind Witch opposite them, his hand was still resting possessively on her hip.

"I came to find the bitch" Kagura said her eyes narrowing "she's still after my boyfriend"

"She wouldn't touch him with a ten foot barge pole" Kagome folded her arms stubbornly "she's moved on to better things"

"Yeah right" Kagura was distracted from her argument for a moment when Sesshoumaru growled menacingly at her. She looked over the muscle bound silver haired form of the dog demon and smirked licking her lips. "I don't believe we have had the pleasure of being introduced, I am—"

"Inconsequential" he completed her sentence

She blinked, taken aback by his cold demeanour. She inhaled subtly and realised he obviously hadn't been playing around with the girl, he had infused his youki with her, he must be serious. Mores the pity.

She turned her scarlet eyes back to Kagome "Direct me to your sister"

"She's at the shoot" Kagome growled and then smirked as Kagura turned to go hunt Kikyo down.

"Why do you smirk Miko?" Sesshoumaru enquired

"Because Kanna's down there too" Kagome's smirk grew to Cheshire cat proportions. Without seeming to realise what she was doing she grabbed Sesshoumaru's hand and guided him down to the shoot to watch the pyrotechnics that were surely about to begin.

"Bitch" Kagura's scathing arrogant tones echoed across the shoot making everyone stop dead. Kanna unnoticed by her younger sister merely watched, Sango rolled her eyes and Kikyo squared her shoulders.

"There are no Inu Yokai females here Kagura" Kikyo said softly "or are you as crass as to use such vulgar language as a state of address"

"Kikyo can get nasty, sometimes" Kagome confided in the Yokai next to her who raised an eyebrow

"Don't you pull that 'holier than thou' attitude with me bitch, we all know you're just a cheap whore" Kagura snarled

"Any Yokai with a nose can tell that you are lying," Kikyo's voice was still soft and even, even though she was currently pinning a viciously growling Hanyou behind her lest he rip Kagura's throat out.

"Whatever, just stay away from my boyfriend bitch" Kagura sneered

"I have been rejecting his phone calls but our line of work dictates that we must meet upon occasion" Kikyo had yet to raise her voice.

"Don't you understand me bitch?"Kagura growled "I said back off!"

"Are you really so insecure that you need to order me to stay away?" Kikyo was amused

"I can't believe y—" she started but was cut off.

"Kagura" Kanna's reprimand was eerily quiet and yet seemed to crack like a whip across the set.

"Onee-sama" Kagura was looking slightly panicked, her eyes darting around erratically

"You have made a disgrace of yourself" she intoned "leave now, or risk bringing more shame to our name"

"But Onee-sama—" Kagura began to protest

"I care little for your smarming Kagura, you would do well to remember that if you lose the esteem in which you are held by the public and your labels you will be dropped. I suggest you pray that this debacle doesn't reach the press" it was the most anyone had ever heard her speak. She nodded to Kagome and Kikyo and then glided from the shoot dragging a thoroughly mollified Kagura behind her.

"You've gotta love Kanna" Kagome sniggered "and Onee-chan you rock!"

Kikyo did a curtsey. "Sometimes in an argument remaining impassive and calm is suffice to win"

"Not to mention it riles up your prey even more" Sesshoumaru's eyes flashed crimson and they all swallowed reflexively as he continued "and then they make mistakes, fatal ones"

Kagome slapped him on the back of his head "Because that's not creepy at all!"

A/N: I don't own Inuyasha. Thank you so much for all your reviews and support! Please review again!


	11. When Movie stars develop infatuations

Chapter 11: When Movie stars develop infatuations...

Kikyo and Kagome were sat at the breakfast bar. It was Saturday and as such they were still in their pyjamas as they sat and read.

Inuyasha came into the kitchen grabbed a bowl of cereal and began wolfing it down as if he had never tasted food before. Kikyo raised an eyebrow and Kagome rolled her eyes.

"You eat like a dog" Kagome told him

He glowered at her but said nothing, content to keep shovelling food into his mouth.

Sesshoumaru, newspaper in hand strolled into the kitchen, he was the only one who wasn't wearing pyjamas, not that this surprised them any. He sat down without comment next to Kagome, on the side of the table that was furthest away from Inuyasha. He hid his smirk when Kagome blushed at his close proximity and brushed his thigh purposely against hers.

"What are you doing?" Inuyasha questioned Kikyo; she looked up from her sheet music and put down the pencil before raising an eyebrow in question.

"I'm fingering my music" she gestured with her pencil

"Nice word choice" Kagome commented as she pulled the calendar from the wall "when did you say your performance was again?"

"Three weeks tomorrow" Kikyo told her "I'm going to be practising a lot so I'll apologise now for the increased noise"

"How come I never normally hear you play?" Inuyasha questioned glancing at her cello

"Because you are possibly deaf" Sesshoumaru commented "even though her room is sound proofed I would have thought your Hanyou ears able of hearing it"

Inuyasha glared at his brother but whatever retort he was going to make was stopped abruptly when Kikyo lunged across the bar for Sesshoumaru's paper. Startled, Sesshoumaru allowed the paper to be pried from his fingers.

Kikyo scanned the page and then let out a triumphant noise.

Rin who came come in to get cereal unnoticed grabbed her bowl from the counter and said "Kikyo-Oneechan has gone crazy" before retreating into the living room to watch cartoons.

"I agree with Rin-chan, what's going on with you Kikyo?" Kagome asked walking back over to her twin.

"Hojo's back" Kikyo proclaimed brandishing the paper in her bemused sisters face

"What do you mean?" Kagome asked snatching the paper from her twin whilst Sesshoumaru watched distaste evident on his features as they rumpled his paper.

"Who's back?" Inuyasha asked, annoyed at being kept in the dark

"Hojo the Handsome" Kikyo was grinning evilly at her sister "It's only a matter of time until—"

"Kagome-Oneechan, Hojo-san is on TV" Rin chirped from the living room

Kikyo made a gleeful nose and Kagome followed stony faced into the living room.

"So Hojo-sama" the interviewer batted her eyes at the relaxed, handsome teenager leaning on her leather couch. "After your recent success in the American film industry what brings you back here to Japan?"

He reclined lazily and smirked "The beautiful Higurashi Kagome-san" he proclaimed

Kagome smacked herself on her forehead and groaned "Why me?"

"Who is this boy?" Sesshoumaru asked; his eyebrow rose so far it was camouflaged into his hair line.

"He used to live in this building, he's been obsessed by Kagome-chan for a very long time" Kikyo grinned "and he's come back"

"To haunt me" Kagome groaned "that guy seriously doesn't understand the word 'no'" Kagome sighed

"That obstinacy has nearly gotten him killed on occasion" Kikyo said giving Kagome a suddenly more sober look and Kagome nodded.

"Hojo was lucky that I managed to calm Gin down, I was sure he was going to kill him that time" Kagome sighed

"Gin?" Inuyasha was confused

"An old friend" Kagome dismissed it, but her dismissal was too fast to be accepted by Sesshoumaru. He filed it away for future notice.

The door opened and slammed shut again and Megumi trundled into the apartment with flies under her arms and a windswept look about her.

"Okasan, you okay?" Kagome asked bemusedly as she flipped the channel on the TV so that Rin could watch her cartoons.

"I'm brilliant!" Megumi exclaimed

Kagome and Kikyo swapped a look, they knew the mischevious glitter in their mother's eyes well. Something was cooking up in her mind.

"What is it?" Kagome asked suspiciously

"That actor boy Hojo has agreed to do some modelling, on a strictly one time basis" she scrunched up her nose in annoyance "but it's still brilliant!" she exclaimed, abruptly dropping the files onto the sofa.

"And what's the catch?" Kagome's right eye was twitching and the others looked like they were watching a tennis match, not a conversation. Sesshoumaru on the other hand looked both disinterested and annoyed all at once.

"Catch?" Megumi played it innocent and began to flick through the deposited files.

"What did he want in return?" Kagome folded her arms and pinned her mother with a gimlet stare.

"Nothing" Megumi waved her hand as if the conversation was an annoying gnat.

"Okasan!" Kagome protested

"Fine!" she threw her hands up in defeat "he wants you to design for the shoot and you have to be there on the day" the last was garbled as she rushed through her words.

"I knew it" Kagome groused

"He just can't take a hint" Kikyo shrugged

"Why is he obsessed with you Miko?" Sesshoumaru questioned imperiously

"When we were kids Kagome would protect him from the bullies in our old neighbourhood, ever since he's been hanging on her every word as if she is honey and he's an insect"

"A fly" Kagome supplied "one that whines in my ear constantly and refuses to die"

Inuyasha chortled "Sounds fun"

"Shut up dog boy, I'll bite you, I mean it" she warned, flopping down onto the sofa with a distinct lacking of grace.

"Why do you always threaten to bite?" Sesshoumaru queried "are you a child?"

She snapped her teeth at him and growled; Sesshoumaru's eyebrow flew into his hairline. It was as if she was impersonating a female Inu Yokai.

"Well at least we got a good deal!" Megumi was chipper and clapped her hands together happily

Kagome rolled her eyes and slapped herself on the forehead in a frustrated manner "Well this is just great"

***

Kagome left the apartment three days later to attend the photo shoot which may as well have been her execution for the amount of enthusiasm she was putting in. She had kidnapped a disgruntled and highly confused Sesshoumaru at the door and dragged him by one pointy ear to go with her. She knew Kanna would be there, but she was about as much support as air. At least Sesshoumaru seemed to be remotely caring towards her; after all who kisses someone they don't even like?

Upon arrival at the shoo Kagome attempted to sneak inside via the fire escape and remain undetected. Unfortunately for her the additional accessory of one annoyed Yokai made it nigh on impossible to blend in with the scenery. Sesshoumaru was about as subtle as a bullet to the head.

Sango found them first and pounced upon Kagome wearing a Cheshire cat grin of pure evil delight. Kagome swallowed hard.

"I didn't think you'd appear" she confided in the younger girl "not whilst lover boy is in the vicinity"

"Kill me now" Kagome groaned as she caught sight of Hojo and ducked behind Sesshoumaru; her new Hojo shield. He resisted the urge to roll his eyes at her foolish behaviour.

"Kagome-san!" it was too late he had spotted her. And Sesshoumaru winced at the sheer annoying tone to the shout that was abrasive to his sensitive ears. Kagome had about a seconds notice before she was peeled away from her hiding place with a sheepish smile.

"Hojo-kun, ohayo"

"It's so good to see you again" he gushed completely oblivious to the apparently irate Yokai looking at him he pulled Kagome into a suffocating hug.

Kagome's first thought was 'wow Hojo's not so nerdy anymore'. Obviously in his year long absence from her life he had bulked out quite a bit. It was apparent he was stronger that her now as her attempts to breathe were futile. Her second thought was that she would much prefer to be pressed against her demon friend in such a manner, only difference was she didn't think Sesshoumaru would be suffocating her unless he actually wanted her dead. But that was of little consequence to her now so she forced it down into the recesses of her mind.

Suddenly she could breathe again and she blinked bemusedly up at Hojo who was glaring at Sesshoumaru. Sesshoumaru, for his part, was staring the human down with an intensity that could have cut through steel. His clawed hand was constricted around Hojo's shoulder.

"You should be more aware if what you are doing" Sesshoumaru intoned coldly "you just restricted her airways" he relinquished his grip on the young actors shoulder.

"Arigato" Kagome muttered to Sesshoumaru and Hojo gave a brief nod fuelled from anger

"I'm Mitsukuni Hojo" Hojo introduced himself, eyes narrowed

"Taisho Sesshoumaru" Sesshoumaru was impassive

"Nice name" there was a faint taunting edge to his voice that shocked Kagome slightly.

"As is my nature" Sesshoumaru responded in kind, baring his razor-sharp venom-coated fangs subtly at the human.

Hojo and Sesshoumaru stared at each other; Kagome caught between the two was watching them like it was a game of tennis.

Sesshoumaru, on the other hand, was having problems repressing his possessive nature and did not like the way that the ningen boy still held onto the Miko.

Sango, a mere spectator to the silent pissing contest, smirked. She knew that if he could Sesshoumaru would love to snatch Kagome away from the human, but thanks to the trammels of acceptable social conduct he could do little more than glare and growl, something Sango found amusing.

"Ano... Hojo-kun I think you need to be tended too" Kagome gestured at the hovering, not to mention amused, Sango.

"Oh, yes, quite" he smiled and lifted her hand to his lips, kissed it, and relinquished it before walking away to allow Sango to work.

"He is an insufferable fool" Sesshoumaru commented passively

"He is huh?" she noted as she watched him smirk at his fan-girls who were (for unknown reasons) allowed on set.

"It appears he is fond of you Miko" Sesshoumaru stated

"I'm very lovable" she countered

He smirked and looped an arm casually around her shoulders before leaning down to whisper in her ear. "Very... desirable"

She fought hard not to blush but the attempt was futile and in a matter of seconds she closely resembled a tomato with hair. Hojo, who had noticed Sesshoumaru touching Kagome, scowled at the manoeuvre.

She recovered her wits and frowned at Sesshoumaru "What's with the touching, normally I have to provoke you"

"Today someone else has done the provoking little one" he murmured his eyes flashing as he glared heatedly at Hojo.

"I feel like a bone being fought over by two dogs" she confessed trying to bite the hand that had a grip possessively on her shoulder.

He smirked as he easily dodged her questing teeth and instead slipped behind her so that his chin leant on her shoulder and his arms encased her waist.

"I may be Inu" he nibbled lightly on the part of her throat that was exposed to him and smirked again at her shiver "but he is merely ningen"

"I'm ningen too remember?" she wrinkled her nose at the overbearing Yokai draping himself around her small form and tried to escape. However his arms were unrelenting steel and all escape was impossible.

"Miko" he admonished "not human"

She rolled her eyes "There really isn't that much of a difference"

He nipped her pulse point slightly in reprimand and gleefully glanced over at a seething Hojo who was desperately trying to remain focused on the shoot but failing due to his preoccupation with the Yokai and Kagome.

"Are you gloating?" she enquired

"Maybe a little" he acknowledged

"Poor Hojo"

"Hn"

"He's changed quite a lot though" she noted

"How do you mean?"

"He was never quite this..." she paused as she tried to think of a good word to describe it "well earlier, in his eyes, I thought I saw maliciousness towards you. Also he's always been so oblivious, but now it's like he's more calculating"

"Hn" Sesshoumaru acknowledged "you are correct, if he was truly as you say then he wouldn't have had the gall to impose conditions on this shoot, merely he would have hoped that a string of coincidences would lead to you coming here"

Sango, who had been eavesdropping on most of the conversation, came up to them. "Haven't you read the gossip magazines recently?" she interjected

"No, I can't stand the things" Kagome confessed. Sesshoumaru merely raised an incredulous eyebrow at the thought that he would ever read such filth.

Sango shrugged "well, whilst he was in America he was involved in some scandalous affairs with some of the female actors on set. It was quite the story, the girls had all been good friends before he showed up. One of them had taken an instant liking to him and they went out for a few weeks but then she dumped him in a humiliating fashion" Sango's nose wrinkled s she tried to remember more details "I think it was on set or something, in front of the director at least."

"Then what?" Kagome asked

"He got back at her by sleeping with all of the other girls on set and turning them against the one who had dumped him. It seems America taught him a little in the art of manipulation"

Kagome frowned "he was always so harmless and sweet before" she said despondently "I don't want to believe he could have changed that much"

"Apparently he has" Sesshoumaru pointed out

She wrinkled her nose up slightly and subconsciously leaned back against Sesshoumaru. His beast purred in contentment.

After many 'covert' glances from Hojo and even less subtle gestures of affection from Sesshoumaru the shoot was finally over and they were permitted to leave. Of course Hojo caught Kagome before she could escape, much to her chagrin.

"Come for a coffee with me!" Hojo chirped and before Kagome could blink and Sesshoumaru could respond she had been spirited away from the set by an overly enthusiastic human boy.

***

Kagome gazed around the repugnantly cute coffee shop with a look of disdain bordering on panic. This was not where she wanted to be. She slumped down further in her seat so she could rest her chin on her chest and glared petulantly at the person sat opposite her.

"So" he mused as he sipped from his cup and smirked at the whispers his presence was enticing. "How are you?"

"I'm fine" she answered shortly

" And who, may I ask, was that demon?" he enquired

"He and his brother are staying with us in the flat" she said

"Two teenage boys in your flat" he sounded outraged "and they're demons, what was your mother thinking"

She wondered offhandedly who had rattled his cage and replied "It's fine, they're our friends and they've done nothing to warrant suspicion on your part"

He shook his head "He has tattoo's," he lowered his voice slightly "what if he's in a gang? Please tell me you aren't going to get involved in another gang"

She glared at him "They aren't tattoo's they are demon markings, he was born with them and I am not in a gang! And I never was!"

He clasped her hand on the table in between his own "You don't have to hide anything from me." he smiled in his most charming manner "I'll always be here for you"

Her anger was stifled somewhat after his last comment "Thank you Hojo-kun, but I'm a big girl and I can look after myself"

He rubbed his thumb across the back of her hand "I'm sure you can, but I'll always be here for you Kagome-chan" he smiled "I've grown up now, and I can protect you"

She didn't know what to say to that so she quickly gulped down some of her coffee, nearly burning herself in the process.

***

Kagome barely set on foot into the apartment before Sesshoumaru was on her he gripped her wrist in his hand and pulled it up so that he could sniff the hand Hojo had caressed.

"You allowed the human to touch you?" he queried

"He wasn't doing anything wrong" she shrugged

"Hn" Sesshoumaru brought the hand to his mouth and kissed it gently "neither am I"

She rolled her eyes "You are far more touchy feely" she pointed out

"That way the boy will learn who you belong to" he smiled as he yanked her flush with him by her wrist. She glowered at him.

"Yeah, I belong to me" she pushed away from him and walked off with her nose in the air.

Sesshoumaru watched her go before sitting down on the sofa again. Inuyasha smirked at him.

"It's not often you share" he confided "I thought the human would be dead by now"

"I do not share" Sesshoumaru nodded "but killing him would upset the Miko"

Inuyasha chuckled "Possessive bastard"

"Precisely"

A/N: I do not own Inuyasha! I hope you liked this and thank you for all your reviews. So if you like it review! It makes my day and I do my happy dance!


	12. The Slander of Kikyo

Chapter 12: The Slander of Kikyo.

Kikyo walked into the kitchen and narrowed her eyes. They were all sat there, inconspicuously enough eating breakfast, but they all looked decidedly guilty. Except Sesshoumaru, who merely looked annoyed, but then Sesshoumaru was always the exception to everything.

The first thing that she noticed was the huge bouquet of yellow irises taking up the majority of space on the breakfast bar and also seemingly the source of the dog demon's ire.

"What's with the flowers?" she enquired as she pulled up a stool and sat down

"Kagome got them from that human movie star" Inuyasha smirked "The asshole" he chucked a thumb in the direction of his brother "was upset"

"Cease your snivelling, Hanyou, whilst you still posses the ability to breathe" Sesshoumaru sounded disinterested but his eyes were alight with indignation.

Inuyasha merely chortled into his toast, the apparent displeasure of his older brother making his day.

"So why do you look sheepish?" Kikyo turned on Kagome who jumped in her chair before looking guilty.

"No reason" she protested

"Really?" Kikyo once again cast an eye around the kitchen, something as out of place… and then she noticed it. Rin wasn't sat in front of the TV and Sesshoumaru's morning paper was suspiciously absent.

"There is a distinct lacking of media this morning" she commented airily and nodded in triumph as Kagome and Inuyasha tensed "so what are you hiding?"

She had to duck suddenly as a newspaper came winging her way courtesy of a coffee cup wielding Sesshoumaru "I tire of this charade, she will discover it eventually and will not benefit from your attempts at secrecy"

Kikyo raised a brow at the Inu's speech before turning her attention to the tabloid in front of her. Sesshoumaru, satisfied, turned back to his broadsheet to recommence reading.

Kikyo's eyes dissected the tabloid in front of her and as she read her eyes became wider and wider whilst her face became more and more impassive.

"Oh" she murmured and then proceeded to read aloud "Kikyo Higurashi, formerly the most well known model for the designer brand HG designs, may be dropped today from her modelling label after recent claims from one Naraku Onigumo, a leading fashion photographer, that she is verbally abusive to the other models on set. The modelling agency said that they promote a feeling of harmony between their professional models and that this discontent from Kikyo will not continue. Kagura Ito has been subjected to such verbal abuse, though she is unsure as to why she warranted such an attack. Kagura Ito the lesser known sister of Kanna Ito said she was 'belittled for being less of a model than her sister' and that Kikyo behaved 'in a crude and unprofessional manner' towards Kagura on set 'shouting insults' and 'demeaning' the other model."

Inuyasha was growling "She was the one yelling, not you!"

The phone rang and Kikyo's dispassionate eyes slid across to rest on it before she snatched it from the stand. "Yes" there was a pause "no… it is a false claim… no" she hung up and turned to look at them again "It would seem that unless I can come up with evidence to the contrary I will be dropped from my label"

She turned and walked up the stairs towards her room.

"Kikyo, where are you going? We have to find evidence!" Kagome yelped

"It cannot be done, they will not speak for me" her shoulders straightened out with her pride even in her depression "they hate me"

"Kikyo" Kagome murmured biting her lip.

They waited in silence for the slam of the door signifying Kikyo's isolation from the world and Kagome turned to Sesshoumaru.

"What is she playing?" she asked

He held a finger to his lips and listened for a moment before opening his eyes and shrugging softly "I don't know. I don't believe that she knows either. It would seem she is playing from the heart"

Kagome stood up to go after her sister but was stopped by a clawed hand wrapping around her elbow.

Inuyasha stood there, his eyes obscured from her as she tried to catch them. "I'll go"

The demon and the Miko watched the half demon leave, one with approving eyes and the other with a half smile.

"Looks like I've been replaced" Kagome chuckled "but I'm glad, none the less"

"Indeed, the Hanyou seems to have learnt compassion" Sesshoumaru nodded

"I think he always knew it, but never expressed it" Kagome mused.

"Hn"

Kagome seemed to snap out of it and spinning on her heel she turned around to look at Sesshoumaru and slammed her hand on the table. "Hey!"

"Yes?" he crooked an eyebrow at her

"You are coming with me!" she ordered "we need to recover Kikyo-neechan's good name"

"And why, pray tell, do you require my assistance?" he queried as she threw his coat at him.

"Because I need brains and brawn. I provide the brains and you provide the brawn" she threaded her own coat about her shoulders and looked at him expectantly.

He rolled his eyes and donned his coat "In this partnership little one I provide both of those attributes"

"Bite me" she responded and gasped as a second later she found herself pressed against the kitchen wall with a demon licking and biting her neck. Her knees began to tremble beneath her as he suckled and nibbled on her pulse point repeatedly before slowly drawing away and up her neck to nibble on her ear lobe.

"You would do well not to entice my beast little one" he murmured and smiled as she shivered against him. He snagged the keys from her trembling hand and opened the door to the apartment "I'm driving"

She stared after his back in shock and smacked her head against the wall before glancing around to ensure that Rin was entertained. She sighed and began following the domineering Inu that had just stolen her breath and her car keys.

***

Kagome pushed open the double doors to the huge glass building and skipped inside, a disgruntled Yokai at her side. Saluting the guard she grabbed Sesshoumaru's wrist and dragged him into the lift whilst pressing the button for the top floor.

"Your mother's company is prosperous" he noted

"No shit Sherlock" she rolled her eyes "everything here is amazing and all, but she tends to be just as disorganised here as she is at home"

Sesshoumaru's eyes widened minutely in horror "You mean to tell me she acts the same way in public?"

Kagome snorted "Of course, she doesn't know the meaning of the phrase 'tone it down'"

Sesshoumaru watched in dismay as her words were proven correct. The elevator doors slid open to reveal a huge office that took up the entire floor. Every spare space had something on it, be it fabric, paper, sequins or a business agreement, it was like someone had picked up her office at home and amplified it around a hundred time to leave this… whatever this was.

There was one small island of order in the storm of chaos. A small mahogany desk with filing cabinets lining it sat at the beginning of the fabric jungle. Sat behind it was a harassed looking woman in an impeccable eggshell blue suit with her dark hair twisted into a neat bun.

She looked up as they entered and smiled warmly at Kagome. "Kagome-chan, perhaps you can find your mother for me, she ran in this morning complaining that her latest models were going to be doing a shoot in their birthday suits because she had no inspiration. And now I can't find her" she gestured exasperatedly behind her at the office turned explosion.

Sesshoumaru snorted at the notion of finding anything in that… thing.

"Oh, Misako-san, we aren't here for her" she waved a hand dismissively "I'm here because I need to know if Kikyo's reputation is salvageable?"

Misako nodded solemnly "I do believe so, if you can prove beyond a doubt that the accusations are false"

Kagome smiled wickedly "That should be easy, will you find me a tabloid journalist? I have a story to tell"

And with that the Miko dragged the Yokai back to the elevator and disappeared.

Misako blinked, Kagome had always been the exuberant one. She sighed and glanced behind her at the explosion masquerading as an office.

"Megumi-san, come on, we have a meeting in five minutes"

There was a groan from somewhere inside the jungle and Misako rolled her eyes, it would seem they were going to be late.

***

"Where are we going now Miko?" Sesshoumaru queried as one determined Miko towed him long a road he didn't know to an apartment complex he wasn't familiar with.

"Naraku's apartment" she commented blithely

"How do you know where he lives?" he glowered at her

"Google" she replied, as if it was obvious.

"Of course"

She rolled her eyes at him before skipping into the lobby of the apartment complex and gleefully tugging him inside the elevator.

"You have a plan?" he asked as they came to Naraku's floor

"Always" she grinned. She carefully muttered the spell she and Kikyo had used to torment their hated uncle on the Christmas of their tenth year.

Sesshoumaru blinked at Kagome, who was now Kikyo. But, as he discovered after a discrete sniff, she still smelt like Kagome.

"You did not glamour your scent?"

Kagome shrugged and replied in Kikyo's voice "He's an arachnid, he's not going to spend too much time scenting me, after all I look like her and I have her voice"

Without further ado 'Kikyo' skipped forward and rapped on the door sharply.

There was a moment for Sesshoumaru to obscure himself from the view of the peephole before Naraku's smarmy voice answered.

"Kikyo, so good to see you" he drawled

"Just let me in" 'Kikyo' ordered

The door slowly opened and 'Kikyo' put her foot inside before Sesshoumaru stepped up and threw the door open knocking Naraku to the floor.

"My sincerest apologies, I didn't notice you" Sesshoumaru smirked

Kagome melted back into existence and Naraku narrowed his eyes at the duo.

"What are you two kids doing here?" he demanded

"Getting Kikyo's reputation back" Kagome said glowering

"That little bitch got what was coming to her" he snarled jumping to his feet "now get the hell out" he grabbed Kagome's arm and tried to manhandle her out, only to be thrown again by an irate Sesshoumaru.

"Do not touch her Hanyou" he growled slipping a possessive arm around her waist.

"Touching" he muttered pulling himself from the heap he had been tossed in "but get the hell out"

"You're very petty Naraku" Kagome noted "just because she rejected you for Inuyasha is no excuse for slander"

"She wants to hang around with a mutt instead of me she pays the price" he growled

"The price?"

"She looses her fame" he chuckled "it was surprisingly easy, after all no one really liked her, she was too silent. It would've been harder to turn them against you Kagome-chan. But Kikyo no one cares, she's silent enough to arouse suspicions that the gossip might be truth"

"So you did this to her on purpose?" Kagome demanded

"Yes, of course I did. It was so easy to get the tabloids to believe in my lies, especially when Kagura was only too happy to back me up" he chuckled "she doesn't take kindly to being made a fool of"

"So you orchestrated this entire plan as revenge for being jilted?" Sesshoumaru sneered

Naraku growled "Don't act so high and mighty mutt. She chose the wrong option and as such measures were taken to ensure she never forgot what the wrong option would lead to"

"You're a psychopath you know that right?" Kagome glowered at him

"Whatever, just get the hell out before I cal the police"

"We are leaving" Sesshoumaru escorted Kagome from the apartment into the elevator and watched as he face broke out into a huge grin.

"What is it Miko?"

"I got me some evidence" she pulled a small device from her bra and Sesshoumaru's eyes widened. "Now let's go catch us a wind-witch"

***

Kagura smiled as she threw open the door to her sisters house. Normally she dreaded coming home to where the bitch who called herself her sister lurked but today she was in too much of a good mood.

She had been offered several modelling jobs that had rejected Kikyo, she had given an interview with one of the most influential magazines in Japan and Abi-hime and her little posse of prissy models had finally deemed her worthy of their prestigious club.

They were the crème de la crème of the modelling circuit, three amazingly beautiful models who were invited to all of the best parties and who got all the sweetest contracts. Only the foolish passed up an invitation from them, Kanna had done it and so had Kikyo and soon Kagura would see them both disgraced. Only Hime herself was above Abi-hime and even then Abi-hime was often sighted copying Hime.

Kagura held no love for her sister; she was successful and yet never aided her in any way, what happened to family solidarity? Well she would get hers eventually.

Even allowing Kagura to stay in the house came at a price; Kanna made her pay an extortionate rent that kept her nearly out of pocket. But it was worth it to see the awe on people's faces when she revealed she lived in one of the most exclusive neighbourhood's in Japan.

She opened her bedroom door and stopped dead at the sight that greeted her.

Sprawled across her bed was one shirtless Sesshoumaru, staring at her lustfully. Sure Naraku was a good catch but this demon blew him out of the water.

"Kagura" his sultry voice purred at her.

She smirked, this day was truly going brilliantly.

"Sesshoumaru, how did you get in?" she asked coming over to her bed to straddle the demon's waist.

"Kanna let me in" he replied flipping them so that he was pinning her underneath his frame.

She frowned for a moment "Kanna would never let you in"

Sesshoumaru smirked and quickly secured her wrists to the bedposts using her own cuff-links. He then retreated from the bed and smirked as she glowered at him.

"Of course she wouldn't let Sesshoumaru in" the demon clicked his fingers and Kagura watched in horror as Kagome melted into existence once again. "But then again, I'm not Sesshoumaru"

"You little bitch!" she screeched

"Do shut up" Kagome rolled her eyes and sniggered, she could've just asked Kagura in her own body but, as Sesshoumaru was unable to provide backup this time, she had taken evasive manoeuvres. But they were damn funny evasive manoeuvres. "So I want to know why you have a vendetta against my sister"

"She had it coming" Kagura growled

"You sound awfully like Naraku did earlier" Kagome mused

"So what, I just followed his plan and it worked to my advantage" Kagura was still struggling with her cuffs "take these damn things off me!"

"No" Kagome grinned "those are nasty by the way"

"Shut up, a little girl like you wouldn't understand"

"I don't want to understand" Kagome shuddered "and that drawer of yours is nasty"

Kagura actually had the decency to blush at that "Well then you shouldn't have broken in!"

"I was let in by your sister" Kagome rolled her eyes "we've been through this"

"Then get the hell out!"

"First I want to clarify that you lied about my sister" Kagome folded her arms across her chest

"Yes, I lied okay?" Kagura was getting more and more irritated by the second "Now just let me go"

"Hn" Kagome quoted Sesshoumaru "I don't think so"

Blowing a kiss at the stranded Kaze Yokai she twirled on her heels and vacated the room giggling hysterically as the irate demon called out after her.

"Did you acquire what you needed?" Kanna floated to her side

"Yep, thank you Kanna" Kagome smiled

"Here" Kanna handed her the requested document

"Thank you again" Kagome grinned and skipped out of the house and climbed into the car to greet Sesshoumaru.

"Did you do it?" she asked

He nodded "Abi-hime, it would seem, is on our side" he paused and smirked "she was quite enamoured with me"

Kagome rolled her eyes "She'd be enamoured with anything with enough beauty"

"Thank you for the compliment"

Her cheeks pinked in outrage "That's not what I meant!"

***

Kagome burst into the room she shared with Kikyo and startled the Hanyou and the Miko from their slumbering embrace on her bed.

Kagome paused for a moment to roll her eyes and stick out her tongue "That's my bed you guys, please refrains from any such activities"

Kikyo glared at her and Inuyasha blushed bright red "W-we, I-I mean I wasn't" he was steadily turning into a tomato

"I was joking dog boy" Kagome rolled her eyes and threw something at him which hit him squarely in the forehead.

"What's this?" he demanded

"That, dog boy, it our article being published tomorrow in Japan's favourite tabloid newspaper about how Kikyo was framed" Kagome smirked triumphantly

"How'd you do that?" Kikyo snatched the article from Inuyasha

"A taped confession from Naraku and Kagura, a written documentation of what happened when we went to that photo shoot in the woods from Kanna and Abi-hime's vow that she would cast Kagura out from the 'coven'" Kagome grinned "and we have ourselves a piece of gold, pus your modelling contract no longer hangs in the balance"

"You're even craftier than my brother" Inuyasha muttered

Kagome took a bow "Why thank you dog boy"

A/N: I don't own Inuyasha and I cherish all of your beautiful reviews.


	13. Fan Girls Anyone?

Chapter 13: Fan Girls Anyone?

It was the kind of lazy Sunday when no one was willing to do much of anything. The newly extended Higurashi family, bar Megumi who was on business in Paris, sprawled themselves out in the front room.

Sesshoumaru was reading some very complicated book written in English, which confused them to no end; Kagome was sat on the floor braiding Rin's hair into a French plait whilst Rin watched cartoons; Kikyo was sat on a chair and calmly practising her cello for her up and coming recital and Inuyasha was alternating between watching the cartoons, watching Kikyo and attempting to wind Sesshoumaru up.

Finishing Rin's hair Kagome picked up Sesshoumaru's discarded newspaper and perused it for the crossword. But something she saw amused her even more.

"Kagura has been dropped from her modelling agency" Kagome announced to the room "and Naraku has been having some trouble getting a gig" she grinned impishly

"They will recover" Sesshoumaru intoned

Kagome gave him a surprised look "Of course they will. I never intended to ruin them, merely warn them off"

Sesshoumaru raised a brow and Kagome rolled her eyes. She turned back to her crossword and the room quietened into the comfortable silence of friends and family.

But only for a short while.

Kagome let out a tiny shriek and then started to laugh manically whilst the others merely watched in shock, each wondering if she had finally cracked and lost her mind.

"It's today!" she chuckled once she could breathe again

"What's today wench?" Inuyasha asked

"Today is the day that Sesshoumaru's 'seductive' billboard gets hung" she paused "over there" she pointed at the building "and in other random locations in the city"

This time, when she dissolved into giggles Inuyasha joined her, Kikyo following soon after and finally Rin fell at the expression on the Inu's face. He regarded them haughtily and glanced with barely concealed fury at where his likeness would soon be hung.

***

It didn't take long for the storm to hit. Kagome, Sesshoumaru and Rin had decided that seeing as Inuyasha at as though his stomach was a void they needed more food. And so, armed with money and hopefully some food-shopping sense, they braved the streets of the city whilst Sesshoumaru's likeness smouldered down on them.

Needless to say Sesshoumaru was perhaps not in the best of moods.

They had only been out for around an hour when the whispering started. The people, females more noticeably, had begun to recognise him from the billboard.

Soon the whispers became too loud to ignore and Kagome wisely chose to leave the shop lest Sesshoumaru destroy it.

They hurried home, flocks of women pausing to stop and stare on the way and when they finally got back to the apartment Inuyasha nearly killed himself laughing at his half-brother's dilemma.

Sesshoumaru was beyond homicidal and, after knocking Inuyasha out cold, he retreated to his bedroom with a look that forbade following.

"He's gonna kill us" Kagome noted

"He does seem rather angry" Kikyo commented as she checked that Inuyasha was still breathing.

***

It didn't get much better, in fact it got worse. Soon Sesshoumaru was being stalked by 'inconspicuous' women and when the article came out in the magazines using the same photograph he was practically mobbed wherever he went.

But it seemed the worst was yet to come, the swimwear advertisement was put out and they had no choice but to go outside and attend school.

In school the whispering and the stalking grew worse, some even started to take covert pictures of him.

Kagome wandered through the corridors with little care, she was gleeful that Sesshoumaru was so angry about the fan girls stalking him and loved watching the expressions of horror flit across his face. She turned down the corridor that led to the lockers; she had forgotten her chemistry notebook.

As she entered the locker area she paid little attention towards the group of girls, all in the year above her, that were stood near Sesshoumaru's locker.

Blithely she opened her locker, retrieved her book and turned to leave. Only to be stopped by a hand on her arm that shoved her back into the row of lockers.

"You're the one who lives with Sesshoumaru-sama right?"

"Yeah right" she ventured hesitantly

"Hmph" the one who appeared to be the spokes person fixed her with a haughty glare. Kagome frowned at her, she thought her name was, Abi, Aki or Ami... something like that.

"So um... are you going to let go now?" she asked glancing meaningfully at the arm they were holding hostage.

"What makes her so special" the second girl was disgruntled.

"Nothing" Ami, for that was her name Kagome remembered, tossed her hair "She's not special at all, just marginally lucky. I bet Sesshoumaru-sama never even gives her a second look"

Kagome rolled her eyes at the three obnoxious girls, whilst the third had yet to speak the glare she was giving Kagome was a most unwelcome present.

Ami caught the expression and smiled sadistically "and if he is paying any attention to you it's obvious that it was because he was frustrated and you were there. Easy access you know. He's a demon and you can tell by looking at him he has high standards, you're just a plaything. He'll throw you away when he's had enough"

Kagome pursed her lips and raised a brow "Do I care?"

Ami laughed, it wasn't a pleasant sound "Besides" she glanced won meaningfully at Kagome's thighs "any attention you're getting is pity, you aren't exactly skinny, are you?"

Kagome flinched, though she tried desperately not to. These people, people like Ami, knew how to hit her insecurities on the head. She glowered at Ami as she tried to figure out what to do. She wanted to get away from them, but they had yet to relinquish their grip on her, their sharp nails digging in to the soft skin of her arms.

These girls were all waifs thin and scarily pointy with elbows that could probably blind a person.

"Hn" Sesshoumaru's cold voice cut across the group of girls.

"Sesshoumaru-sama!" the girls chorused happily and Kagome rolled her eyes

"You think that being skinny is desirable?" Sesshoumaru questioned as he pulled Kagome from them and held her to his side "I am Inu" he declared "we prefer a shapely ass," his smirk turned sensually sadistic "it is no fun to have bones digging into you whilst you are trying to rut"

And, with that, he left the three girls to stare open mouthed at his back as he walked away with Kagome in tow."Did you just dismiss them using the term 'rutting'?" she queried

He smirked "It would seem so"

***

At the end of the day Sesshoumaru dragged Kagome out of the damnable building without bothering to wait for Inuyasha.

When she had protested he had told her the he had given Inuyasha the car keys and that they wee walking. They took the scenic route and the lesser travelled path coupled with Kagome's presence and soothing scent calmed him down enough that he was actually able to engage in some banter with the Miko.

"It's nice to see you less liable to rip my head off" she commented

"It's nice to be in the company of someone who is not insipid" he replied

She rolled her eyes "I'm gonna take the sight hint of a compliment in that sentence and put it in my scrapbook" she promised

"You are wise to do so, I rarely give even hinted compliments" he smirked

She put a hand to her forehead and mock swooned "I'm honoured"

"So you should be" he acknowledged and then grinned wolfishly as she punched his arm.

They eventually approached the apartment, only to stop stock still in horror.

"Oh god" she murmured "they know where we live?"

"Brilliant" he muttered acerbically.

And suddenly the fan girls were upon them, Kagome tried to keep sight of Sesshoumaru only to be pushed out of the way by one overly zealous fan girl. She winced as she realised she was going to fall over and braced herself for impact.

An impact that never came.

She opened eyes that she didn't recollect closing to spy none other than Hojo.

"Hello Kagome" he crooned

"Hey, thanks for catching me" she said as he helped her stand up right she glanced at the mob that had formed around her demon friend "how come you aren't attracting attention?"

"They're preoccupied" he shrugged nonplussed "It's strange your demon friend let them try to hurt you"

"He didn't let them do anything, he's really not in control" she shrugged glancing worriedly back at the group

Hojo shook his head "Trust me Kagome-chan, guys like that can have fan girls obeying their every whim in seconds, he could have helped you"

"Doubt it" she shook her head "he hates attention and really doesn't flaunt himself"

Hojo laughed and narrowed his eyes "I doubt that very much, he is a demon they constantly use their attributes to their advantage."

Kagome didn't feel very comfortable with the Sesshoumaru bashing session that seemed to be going on so she steered the conversation away from him "So, what are you doing here, Hojo-kun?"

He smiled sincerely "I just came to say hi and invite you out for coffee" he said

"Whatever your plans are with the Miko they are to be cancelled" Sesshoumaru, apparently free from his mob, popped into the conversation before Kagome could collect herself enough to form an answer. Without waiting for Kagome to do anything or say goodbye, the irritated dog demon swept her up and held her as one would a baby before disappearing into the building.

The fan girls sighed wistfully.

"What I wouldn't give to be held bridal style"

"Pity he has a girlfriend"

"Maybe we should tone it down a little if he's involved with someone"

"Yeah"

***

Much to Sesshoumaru's delight the hype seemed to die down over the next few days and he began to relax into his previous routine. Sure they still stalked him, he still encouraged stares and whispering, but he was no longer mobbed by crowds of fan girls.

All was calm and seemingly quiet as the strange family relaxed again.

Until one Hanyou broke the peace and quiet.

He hurtled through the front door and they stared at him in collective shock as he collapsed onto the floor panting heavily.

"What happened to him?" Kagome asked as she toed the fallen Hanyou's head.

"It's his turn" Sesshoumaru replied as he plucked a rose from the Hanyou's hair and grinned sadistically.

***

Another was also grinning sadistically at this time, but for a different, less benign, reason. Cruel eyes glared up at the apartment building and an oath of revenge on the four teenagers dwelling within was uttered to the wind.

They would soon see what the one they took for a fool was capable of.

A/N: I don't own Inuyasha. Thank you all so much for your wonderful reviews, by the way I'm a review junkie so please feel free to review again and make me happy!


	14. ‘We’re Doing This Because We Care'

Chapter 14: Operation 'We're Doing This Because We Care'.

Kagome, Sesshoumaru and Sango sat down to watch as Kikyo and Inuyasha posed on set. They were modelling Kagome's newest design an amazing evening dress that literally smouldered when it was worn. The director had decided a Spanish theme would be perfect and Inuyasha and Kikyo were know in a Tango hold stood atop a table one would expect to find on a Spanish side street.

"They look so good together" Sango commented

"Yeah" Kagome nodded "plus, Kikyo is actually happier these days" she smiled a soft smile

Sesshoumaru was still there with them, but was against actively participating in this ridiculous conversation.

"They'd make a fine couple" Sango commented "they compliment each other"

"Yeah," Kagome sighed "but I can't really see it happening, Inuyasha is too shy and Kikyo is too reserved"

"Inuyasha is shy?" Sango asked raising a brow "he cussed at me just today for accidentally touching his precious ears"

Sesshoumaru interjected "He is all bluster"

"Exactly" Kagome nodded at him "it's a defence mechanism of sorts"

Sango nodded sagely "So in other words we need to give them a little push"

Kagome sniggered "Yeah, a little push"

The two women swapped identical calculating looks and Sesshoumaru took time to thanks the gods that he was not the Hanyou. He didn't want to know what these women were capable of.

***

"So you want to go out tonight?" Kagome, sprawled across Kikyo's bed, enquired innocently.

"Hm?" Kikyo looked up from the copies she was looking over and raised a brow

"I just wondered if you wanted to go out and watch a movie." She shrugged "I even managed to convince Inuyasha and Sesshoumaru to go"

That part was a tiny white lie. She had coaxed Sesshoumaru into manipulating Inuyasha to go.

"Which movie?" Kikyo asked

"Anything that doesn't have Hojo in it" Kagome replied flippantly and Kikyo laughed

"Why not?"

Kagome smiled evilly into her pillow, where Kikyo couldn't see it.

The plan was in motion and hopefully it would not be the ridiculous failure Sesshoumaru had predicted it to be, sometimes he could be a real pessimist.

"There is a rather large flaw to your 'brilliant plan'" Sesshoumaru commented as he and Kagome separated from Inuyasha and Kikyo to buy popcorn.

"And what might that be?" she asked as she took umbrage against his insinuation that her plan was flawed.

"They will not be alone" he pointed out "they are private creatures, for something emotional to unfold there would need to be a modicum of privacy"

She gave him a look like he had grown a second head "You're actually right!" she exclaimed

"I usually am" he muttered dryly. "Besides, your idea seemed like it stemmed from a shoujo manga"

She glowered at him "And what do you propose we do?"

"It is simple" he smirked wickedly and left her to find Inuyasha. It would seem as if he was helping her plans along for the sake of his brother, and while on some level he did want his brother to be happy, she hadn't considered the fact that if Kikyo and Inuyasha were alone, she would also be alone with him.

"Inuyasha" he caught his half-brother's attention

"What?"

"I believe that you carry a certain affection for the older Miko?" his voice brooked no argument

Inuyasha blushed but still managed a jerky nod

"Good," Sesshoumaru smirked wider "then tell her that I have an aversion to movies due to the loud noises and my sensitive hearing and that I have coerced Kagome into leaving with me" he noted that the elder Miko was returning from the bathroom "have fun little brother"

Inuyasha watched, flabbergasted, as his half brother dissolved into the crowd. There was no way in hell he could have just helped was there?

***

Kagome grinned at Sesshoumaru as he approached her "You did it!"

"Of course" he replied loftily

She rolled her eyes "I hope it goes well for them" she sighed wistfully

"You are a meddler; this would have come about of its own course"

She shrugged "Why not let them be happier for longer, no time like the present"

"Indeed"

The group of giggling girls that Sesshoumaru had spotted in his peripheral vision were pressing ever closer. He rolled his eyes as one of them timidly approached him.

"Excuse me, are you a model?" she asked softly

Sesshoumaru had wanted to dismiss them haughtily, but they weren't as awful as some of the girls that stalked him.

"Hn" he nodded

"Cool" she murmured before bowing slightly and running back to her friends

"Poor little whippersnapper" Kagome smiled "you were surprisingly nice"

"I can be nice"

"You can?" her tone implied he couldn't.

He growled "I'll show you nice" he apprehended her wrist and dragged her after him as he pulled her towards.

"Kidnapping me isn't considered nice!" she reminded him as he weaved through the throngs of people with her dangling behind him. He ignored her statement and she wondered what he would do if she sat down, surely then he'd stop walking. Or just tow her along behind him on her but. She decided against sitting down.

"Where are we going?" she asked in confusion as he stole her away from the more populated areas of the city.

He stopped suddenly and she hit into his broad back.

"The underground?" she asked as she glanced around

"We need to catch a train" he sighed as he began walking with her again

"Where are we going?" she asked

"A place I have not been since I moved into the apartment" he allowed

"That really isn't that much information"

He ignored her.

The train was packed tight, as it was rush hour and the two companions had no seat. In fact, Kagome was crushed against a window whilst Sesshoumaru's arms pinned her there on either side of her head. She could tell he was uncomfortable at his close proximity to so many beings; both human and demon.

When the train pulled into their station Sesshoumaru wasted not time in ushering Kagome from the cramped space.

"You okay?" she asked as they walked along the streets to wherever he was taking them.

"Many beings in an enclosed space" he shuddered "is not exactly pleasant to my nose"

"It smelt?" she asked

"I doubt even your nose missed the scent of urine" he wrinkled his nose in distaste

"Ew" she gave him a look "it was probably someone on the train because they're normally pretty okay"

"My argument still stands"

"Whatever, where are we going?" she questioned

"We are already here" he replied smirking at her expression

She blinked a few times in confusion before Sesshoumaru took hold of her shoulders and gently turned her around to face their destination.

"Huh?"

***

Kikyo watched wryly as Inuyasha shovelled popcorn into his mouth. She knew he didn't like salted popcorn and yet he was eating it like there was no tomorrow. If she didn't know better she'd swear he was nervous. Frowning she inspected the Hanyou's darkened profile; he did seem a bit on edge. She thought back to Kagome's bizarre proposition and narrowed her eyes. Was she being set up?

She glanced at Inuyasha again and smiled shrugging metaphorically. She was having fun and didn't want to ruin it. She was happier than she had been since Naraku had spun his web of lies about her.

Besides, it felt good to feel safe and relaxed in his company. She'd been feeling strange recently, like someone was watching her.

***

Kagome sat out on the platform and gazed at the targets laid out before her, he was still getting changed into the robes that were laid out for use.

She was dressed in the traditional hakama and haori of the Miko's due to the fact she was going to be getting in some practise, she hadn't known, however, that Sesshoumaru knew how.

He came out a few minutes later and she had to acquiesce that even if he didn't know how he sure knew how to look the part. He had braided his long silver hair so that it fell in a thick plait down his back and had donned dark blue hakama and a white haori, a long bow was slung over his left shoulder.

Yeah, that's right; Sesshoumaru's idea of being nice was archery.

Not that she had any problem with that, hell it was probably the only thing she could beat him at. She watched as he glided over the wooden floor towards her and allowed herself to wonder why he was so graceful? Was it a demon trait? Or was he just superbly elegant by fault?

"It's rude to stare"

Ah, that's right; he's an arrogant asshole as Inuyasha would put it.

"I'm not staring!" she bit out glaring at him

"Sure"

Not to mention self-possessed. She wondered what he'd look like with arrows sticking in him, a Sesshoumaru pincushion so to say. Noting he slightly deranged look in Kagome's eyes Sesshoumaru decided he best start and hope to distract her.

He took his familiar archers stance, though it had been a few months it was like putting on a favourite pair of old boots.

She snapped out of her sadistic fantasy in time to see Sesshoumaru release his first arrow with deadly accuracy. It hit the centre of the target so hard the poor thing nearly toppled over.

"So you do have some skill" Kagome conceded as she sprang from her seated position, stole an arrow from him and levelled her bow at the target. "I'm still better"

Her arrow whistled through the air and imbedded itself in the centre of the target that was spaced back from the first one. A greater distance and yet still accurate.

"Impressive" he drew the bow taught and released his second arrow once again hitting the next target with pinpoint accuracy. They went on like this until the targets had been filled and there was nothing lef to shoot at, at least that was what Kagome had believed.

Sesshoumaru drew another arrow and smirked at the incredulous look on her face.

"Now what?" she questioned "you start shooting at birds?"

"No" he shook his head "that leaf" he pointed at a large tree in the next field and let loose. She blinked in shock as he deftly pinned a leaf to a tree trunk with his arrow.

"Now that's just showing off" she folded her arms

He smirked "You give up?"

Her eyes flared with blue fire at his words and she drew the bow strong taught and released. There was a clear whistling noise followed by a thunk as she hit an acorn from the same tree and crushed it against the tree's bark.

"Impressive" he nodded and ruffled her hair, smirking as she hissed at him.

"You concede defeat?" she asked

He grinned and deftly grabbing her wrist he brought her hand to his mouth ad brushed his lips across it. "I concede as my lady wishes"

She blushed a brilliant pink colour and he smirked. She threw her bow at him.

"Stop teasing me" she folded her arms and turned her back on the frustrating dog demon. He sighed and reached out to run one clawed finger along her back bone.

She let out a small noise of shock and jumped away from the contact. He chuckled and carefully slid his clawed hands across her shoulders and pulled her backwards into his chest. Softly his hand slid down her arms and linked with her hands, their fingers laced together. She leant her head back against his shoulder and closed her eyes in contentment. He slowly inhaled along the length of her neck drowning in her scent; glancing up at the setting sun he placed a caste kiss over her collar bone.

"See, I can be nice" he whispered, his lips ghosting across her skin as he talked sending a delicious shiver down her spine.

"Mm" she agreed hazily.

He chuckled and nibbling on an ear lobe, regretfully he pulled away slightly "We should go, Kikyo and Inuyasha will worry"

Her foggy brain had a hard time caring what Inuyasha and Kikyo felt but as his presence receded and he dragged her away to change by her hand she snapped back to reality.

She kicked him in the shin "and why, might I ask, are you dragging me in to get changed with you"

He smirked "I thought I might as well take advantage of your dazed state"

She tried to hit him again and he merely ducked, grinning all the while.

They took the train back to the movies, this time the carriage was empty but Sesshoumaru still felt the need to stand so close he was almost breathing in her air. He drive her mad how affectionate he was in private and how distant he was in public.

They walked to the busy street outside the movie theatre and waited impatiently for their unsuspecting victims to emerge.

Emerge they did and Kagome could not help but grin hugely as Inuyasha gifted Kikyo with his jacket because of the cold. Sesshoumaru was about to call out to them when all of his breath left him at one, the Miko had just elbowed him in the stomach and gotten a bruised elbow for her trouble.

"Shh!" she hissed "wait to see if he has the nerve"

They both watched with interest as Inuyasha blushed and made small talk whilst Kikyo indulged him with a hopeful and expectant light in her eyes.

"He's gonna chicken out" Kagome fretted as she waved her hands in annoyance.

"Hn" Sesshoumaru glared at the boy as he shifted his weight from one foot to another and slowly became more uncomfortable.

"We have to do something!" she grabbed his arm and tugged on his sleeve

"Like?" he crooked a brow at her

"Use your demon mojo!" she commanded

He fought the urge to slam his head into the wall a few times in exasperation. Glancing around, he noticed a small child running in the direction of the Miko and the Hanyou and smirked in satisfaction. He carefully sent out a small wave of youki, causing the child to lose his balance. The boy fell over into Kikyo's legs, resulting in her falling onto Inuyasha's chest.

"Score one for the demon" Kagome noted and smirked when Inuyasha placed a chaste, timid kiss upon her sister's lips.

A/N: I don't own Inuyasha. Did you like it? Review and tell me! Thanks to everyone who has reviewed so far, you guys keep me sane.


	15. Play Me

Chapter 15: Play Me.

Four sets of eyes watched in awe mixed with disgust as the black hole that called itself Inuyasha devoured everything laid out on the dinner table before him.

"Is he breathing?" Megumi asked as she sipped her wine.

"Is he even biting it?" Rin queried.

"I think he's just swallowing, like a duck" Kagome proposed.

"Disgusting" Sesshoumaru commented as he speared a shrimp with his chopsticks and popped it into his mouth.

After Inuyasha had decimated his meal he looked around quizzically as his ears twitched atop his head.

"Where's Kikyo?"

Kagome threw her chopsticks at him. "Don't you ever pay attention? She has the recital this week, the one where she's doing a solo?"

"Huh?" Inuyasha was a cross between guilty and panicked, his mouth hung open slightly.

"Gormless fool" Sesshoumaru voiced.

"Wait, so that's why she's been so crabby?" Inuyasha seemed happier at this. "Thought it was something I'd done"

"Baka" Kagome murmured "this is really important to her, she's having problems as it is."

"Yep" Megumi nodded thoughtfully "they really are snobs, those musical people."

"Not all musical people Okasan" Kagome rolled her eyes as her mother carelessly snubbed everyone in the music business .

"What are they doing to her?" Inuyasha's tone was instantly darker.

Kagome shrugged "They're just incredibly competitive, I've met some of them... they're weird." her face took on a somewhat confused yet disgusted look. "Yeah... weird is the word."

Kikyo chose this moment to enter the room. She dragged her feet and moved jerkily like a zombie of some sort from one of Inuyasha's vile videogames. She made no eye contact with anyone and it didn't look like she was breathing, her hair covered her eyes as she trudged over to the fridge and pulled the door out of her way. She then seized the orange juice carton and departed from the room in much the same jerky manner as she had entered it.

"That was creepy." Rin voiced.

"She'd nervous" Kagome offered. "She gets like that when she has to perform."

The phone rang and Kagome pounced upon it.

"Hello?" she asked.

"Hi Kagome" Hojo's voice travelled down the line.

"Hojo-kun?" she was surprised and Sesshoumaru growled so she slapped a hand over his mouth to shut him up.

"Yep" he chuckled "I heard your sister goes to St Julian's school of arts and music."

"Yeah?"

"I used to go there, I was in different classes though" he chuckled "but I heard about the recital coming up. They've invited me to go since I've come back to Japan. Apparently they like to invite their successful ex-pupils."

"So you're going too?" she asked with interest.

"Yes... will I see you there?"

"Of course" she answered quickly and then considered the fact that she probably sounded like she wanted to meet up with him... damn she didn't want him to get the wrong idea.

"Good, then I'll see you Kagome" and he hung up.

She put the phone down and released Sesshoumaru's mouth just in time for him to growl at her.

"How did the boy get this number?" he demanded.

"Um... I gave it to him?" it sounded like a question as she blinked rapidly.

"Hn" he glowered at her and stalked from the room, apparently in annoyance.

"Wow, I think you made Lord Prissy-pants angry" Inuyasha commented.

Kagome kicked the chair out from under him and watched with no little pleasure as he sprawled across the floor.

***

Sesshoumaru was ignoring Kagome. It was actually hard to tell he was ignoring her, given that he rarely chose to speak anyway.

They were driving to Kikyo's school for the recital. Inuyasha, Megumi, Kikyo and Rin were in the other car and driving ahead of them. Kagome was uncomfortable; she was not one to feel relaxed when silence reigned supreme. Peeking at Sesshoumaru from the corner of her eye she nearly flinched at his iron cold expression.

"Um... why are you angry at me?"

No reply, although his left eyebrow did twitch a bit.

"Are you ever going to speak to me again?" she asked biting her bottom lip.

Still no answer. She was beginning to get annoyed now with his uncooperative attitude.

"Come on!" she bit out "don't turn into a wall on me, if you're going to be angry with me then at least tell me what's wrong."

His eyebrow twitched again. He refused to speak about it; he was not going to admit his feelings, even if keeping silent inspired her ire. He refused to admit the anger he felt towards her and this human boy. Not to mention it wasn't exactly anger, more like jealousy. And that didn't sit well with the silver haired demon.

"We are here" he said softly as he pulled up outside the school and quickly exited the car. She groaned and folded her arms before following suit.

She ground to a surprised stop when a decidedly feminine, yet male voice called out.

"Kikyo!"

Twirling to see where her sister was she realised the mystery speaker must have been talking to her; Kikyo was nowhere to be seen.

Sesshoumaru was suddenly at her side and she barely had time to register this when an extremely flamboyant male pounced upon them.

"There you are Kikyo" the male said, barely even looking at Kagome "so are you prepared to mess up, we all know you're going to, after all you spend far too much time modelling to be any good."

Kagome took in this person's appearance. He had longish brown hair that he had pulled into a small ponytail and deviously sparkling grey eyes.

"You need your eyes testing, I'm not Kikyo I'm her twin Kagome" Kagome reprimanded "and don't think you can badmouth my sister"

He completely ignored her, instead setting his sights on an impassive Sesshoumaru.

"Well hello there!" he gushed "I'm Jakotsu, you can call me Jak" Suddenly, Kagome found herself being shoved out of the way, this time by a fan boy, rather than a fan girl.

Surprisingly enough she was once again caught by her night in a shiny tuxedo; Hojo.

"Hey Hojo." she smiled

"We have to stop meeting like this" he quipped.

Pulling Kagome to her feet Hojo smiled winningly, which changed into a disgruntled frown when he realised her attention had been diverted to Sesshoumaru.

She was watching Jakotsu cling to Sesshoumaru whilst Sesshoumaru tried, albeit unsuccessfully, to free himself from the limpet-male.

"So," Hojo put a hand on her arm to regain her attention "you look amazing tonight."

Kagome instantly blushed strawberry red, she had never been very good at receiving compliments, no matter who was doling them out. "Um... thanks."

In truth Kagome did look very good that night. In such an esteemed school formal wear was a must for an event such as this and, on top of making Kikyo a skin tight ivory dress with horizontal splits up her legs to the tops of her thighs, she had created a dress for herself. It was darkest blue and consisted of a fitted corset which melded to her breasts and the curve of her hips and fell down into a waterfall at her feet.

"Won't you come and sit with me tonight?" Hojo asked hopefully, his tone persuasive "I'm afraid I don't really know anyone else here all that well."

She frowned at the pleading note to his voice and shrugged helplessly "Sorry I can't I'm with my family."

"Hey, wait!" he tried to keep a hand on her arm but she pulled away to go and attempt a rescue.

Approaching Sesshoumaru and Jakotsu she grinned at Sesshoumaru and giggled as he growled at her.

"I'd let go of him if I were you, he bites" Kagome warned

Jakotsu paid her no mind except to lick his lips and wink at Sesshoumaru "Can't say I mind."

"Ew" Kagome wrinkled her nose "I didn't want, nor did I need, that mental image."

"Release your hold on my person!" Sesshoumaru ordered.

The wrist watch Jakotsu was wearing beeped as Sesshoumaru readied himself to decapitate the flamboyant male.

"Oh" he smiled "It's time, I'll be seeing you Sesshie-kun!"

A blissfully unaware Jakotsu turned to Kagome and glared at her "You tell your sister to watch her back, I don't take kindly to being upstaged"

And with that he flounced away.

"He was... interesting" Kagome said.

"He is vindictive" Sesshoumaru corrected taking her hand to lead her into the building as she shivered. "I wouldn't be surprised if he does something to try and sabotage your sister."

"Sabotage?" Kagome blinked in shock "Isn't that a bit paranoid?"

"Hn, we shall see."

And, minutes later when they settled themselves into their seats alongside Inuyasha and the others, Sesshoumaru was proven to be correct. Kikyo walked up to them, her ivory dress flickering about her slim legs.

"We have a problem" she said softly.

"What's wrong?" Kagome asked.

"My cello is gone" she said, her eyes alight with panic "and this is happening in ten minutes."

"Shit!" Inuyasha swore as they all jumped to their feet.

"Jakotsu" Sesshoumaru growled.

"You really think so?" Kagome queried.

"It probably was him" Kikyo rolled her eyes exasperatedly "he and I have never really gotten along."

"We split up and we search" Sesshoumaru ordered and everyone, bar Megumi who volunteered to stay there with Rin, took off to search.

It wasn't long until Sesshoumaru and Inuyasha tracked Jakotsu down. Sesshoumaru taking great delight in threatening him with medieval tortures until the boy caved and revealed the location of Kikyo's poor innocent instrument. They all met up backstage to hand Kikyo her cello just in time to go on stage before they settled back into their seats.

The thankful female kissed the Hanyou on his cheek and she left him in a red-faced daze of happiness. Sesshoumaru rolled his eyes.

It was Rin who noticed something was missing.

"What happened to Kagome-neechan?" she piped up just as the light went down.

"I will find her" Sesshoumaru volunteered, and, before anyone could comment, he melted into the darkness and was gone.

***

Kagome's sense of direction was infamous. Famously appalling and as such she had no clue where she was. And did they have to build the school like a labyrinth?

It was also creeping her out; the lights were motion sensitive and so as she walked down each corridor she found she was jumping at every weirdly elongated shadow.

Damn her overactive imagination.

She rounded yet another corner and stilled as the sensation of watching eyes made the hair on the back of her neck stand on end.

Spinning erratically she tried to locate the owner of the eyes she could sense upon her and nearly fell over at the sight of the red eyes glowing from within a darkened classroom.

Muffling a shriek she turned tale and fled down the corridor hoping to escape the eyes that pursued her.

She rounded so many corners, left right and right again. She took a hard right turn, broke the heel on her shoe, rebounded off a wall hit into a display case and landed harshly on her ass.

Rubbing her abused bottom she glanced around in horror, waiting for her pursuer to come upon her and perhaps feast on her entrails. She was watching far too many horror movies.

She shrieked when something pounced on her and turned terrified eyes to find... Sesshoumaru?

"You scared me half to death!" she hissed angrily as she tried to push him off her.

"Shhh!" he clamped a hand around her mouth "there is someone else."

Immediately she settled down and allowed him to pull her to her feet only to nearly fall over backwards when Kagura walked from a classroom to roll her eyes at them.

"Did I scare you little human?" she asked, her red eyes lighting with vindictive mirth.

"What are you doing here?" Kagome asked.

"I go to this school now" she admitted sheepishly "Kanna made me do this; she said I had to do something productive"

"Do you like it here?" Kagome asked curiously.

Kagura smiled slightly "Yeah, I think I enjoy sculpture as" she shrugged.

"So... no hard feelings?" Kagome ventured.

"Nope, as long as you don't hold it against me for trying to jump your boyfriend"

Kagome blinked a few times before blushing in shock "I-I, he's not my... I'm not his..."

"We have to go" Sesshoumaru cut in before he grabbed Kagome, tossed her over his shoulder and walked away, sighing as the girl continued to protest even when she was slung over his arm like a sack of potatoes.

"Why didn't you correct her?" she asked him as they lost sight of Kagura "Why would you do that? Let me go dumbass!"

He smacked her bottom with the flat of his hand and smirked at the little shriek she let out.

"You talk too much."

"Did you just spank me?" she demanded, glad he couldn't see her face and therefore her red cheeks.

"I'll do it again if you don't shut up" he cautioned.

"Sadist" she muttered.

"And you love it" he nibbled on her thigh through her dress and grinned when she shrieked again.

Ah, so that was the cure to jealousy. To tease Kagome, he would have to remember that.

***

An out of breath Hojo caught up with them after the performance as Kagome and Sesshoumaru were about to get into the car to go home. The others had already left and Kagome was decidedly impatient because she needed to pee. Not that she was going to tell Sesshoumaru that.

"Kagome-chan!" he crowed as he appeared beside her

"Bye!" she tried to wave and get into the car but he grabbed her wrist sharply.

"That wasn't very polite!" he reprimanded charmingly

"Neither is this" Sesshoumaru said sweeping Kagome from the boy's arms tilting her over backwards so she was off balance and casually dominating her with his lips.

Though thoroughly disconcerted by the kiss there was no way Kagome was going to dwell on it for too long and soon she was melting in the demon's hold whilst Hojo looked on, aghast.

Smirking at her dazed expression when he pulled away Sesshoumaru carefully bundled her into the front seat of the car.

"You lose boy." he said.

He probably took more pleasure than was normal when he watched Hojo's gormless expression as he left him in his dust. But, oh well, at least he wouldn't be harassing his Miko any time soon.

Yes. _His._

A/N: I don't own Inuyasha. Hope you enjoyed this chapter! Please review!


	16. The Past Comes Knocking

Chapter 16: The Past Comes Knocking.

Sesshoumaru opened the apartment door on a Sunday morning and raised a brow at the woman stood there.

Around the same age as Kagome she was scantily dressed in a scoop necked black shirt, with a leather jacket, a tight black miniskirt with red fishnet tights and black stiletto boots. Her hair was cut short to her chin and she had an ornate comb settled into the black tresses. She turned red eyes to stare at him.

"Where's Kagome?" she asked shortly.

"Who are you?" he asked.

"Yura" she answered in clipped tones "please just can I see Kagome?"

"Oh hell no!" Kikyo announced appearing at Sesshoumaru's side.

"Nice to see you again too, Kikyo" Yura commented acerbically.

"What do want?" Kikyo demanded folding her arms across her chest.

"I just need to speak to Kagome" Yura replied levelly.

"And why would I let you do that?" Kikyo glared at her "You're the reason she almost got kicked out of school."

"I resent that" Yura bit out "you can't blame that entirely on me."

"What's going on?" Kagome asked as she came upon the group of people gathered around the front door. "Yura?"

"Kagome" the girl sounded relieved "can we talk, it's important?"

"Um... sure" Kagome nodded and grabbed her jacket.

"Kagome!" Kikyo grabbed her elbow.

Kagome shook her off "It's fine Kikyo, I'll be right back."

And with that both Kagome and the unknown woman left.

"Who was she?" Inuyasha, who had up until that moment been eating his way through a huge tub of popcorn, wandered blithely into the conversation.

Kikyo sighed and moved away to sit on the sofa.

"Before HG designs really took off we went to a public school, the same school. But we fell in with very different gangs. I got along pretty well with the music types, but Kagome, with her bad temper and mean right hook, became friends with the 'criminals', Yura was the one who encouraged her to hand around with them. They weren't exactly bad; after all we were quite young, around thirteen. But one of the guys in Kagome's group of friends was seventeen and trouble"

Sesshoumaru raised a brow "His name?"

"Gin" Kikyo sighed "he was a kid with a bad childhood and he was the toughest person in the school, got into plenty of fights"

"You have mentioned him before" Sesshoumaru pointed out "I believe he nearly killed Hojo?"

"Ah, yes" Kikyo nodded "Gin was very protective of Kagome and Hojo liking her didn't sit well with him at all. He nearly beat the poor kid to death."

"What happened to nearly get her chucked out of school?" Inuyasha asked.

"Gin had a girlfriend by the name of Shima" Kikyo wrinkled her nose "she was sixteen and a total bitch. I think she was probably jealous of how protective Gin was of Kagome and she started a fight. Kagome tried not to fight back, but when she was punched in the face it was the last straw. They both got sent to the office and Shima got expelled, it wasn't the first time she had done something like that, and Kagome got suspended. Kagome was forbidden from even talking to them again and three months later HG designs took off, we moved here and Kagome grew up."

"So it wasn't Kagome's fault" Inuyasha said.

"No, but those people are bad for her" Kikyo shook her head "I don't like it"

"What happened to Gin?" Inuyasha asked.

"He got arrested" Kikyo shrugged "I think for assault."

"Wow" Inuyasha said "I never would have thought Kagome would be like that."

"She wasn't, only with them" Kikyo shrugged "she's always been too innocent for her own good, she believed they weren't really bad people."

"Sounds like Kagome" Inuyasha snorted "too innocent for her own good."

***

Kagome led Yura to the nearby park and cut to the chase.

"What do you want?"

"No hello? How have you been?" Yura asked flippantly only to receive an angry glare.

"I won't ask you again" Kagome folded her arms.

"I miss you, it's no fun without your incurably innocent worldview" Yura sighed.

"Get to the point Yura."

"It's... Gin" she pulled the comb from her hair and rubbed her thumb over the intricate pattern on it "He's out of prison, he asked me to tell you."

"So?" Kagome asked running a hand through her hair in frustration.

"He'd like to see you" Yura shrugged.

Kagome stiffened and looked away towards her apartment building. "I can't."

"He just wants to see you" Yura protested "Why won't you?"

"Because I'm happy now" Kagome shrugged "you'll always be my friend, I'll always love you but I need you to let me go for my sake."

Yura looked down at her comb and spoke softly "I know" biting her lip she continued "but, just this once, to say goodbye won't you go and see him?" she pressed a piece of paper into Kagome's palm.

Kagome smiled and stepped forward hugging Yuka tightly. A moment later Yuka wrapped her arms around Kagome and leant her head on her shoulder.

"Sayonara, Yura-chan" Kagome whispered as she pulled away and began to walk from her past.

"Will you see him?"

"I don't know" Kagome's voice drifted back to the girl and Yura sighed.

"Sayonara, Kagome-chan. Have a good life."

***

As soon as Kagome got inside the door she was pounced upon by Kikyo.

"What happened? Kagome, how could you go with her?" Kikyo demanded

"We said goodbye properly" Kagome pulled her jacket off and removed her shoes. "That's it"

"If you think I'm going to believe that then you're wrong" Kikyo bit out

Kagome turned on her twin "Don't you trust me enough to make my own decisions?"

"Not when it involves these people, with them you're your own worst enemy" Kikyo retaliated

"I'm glad I have your support, thanks" Kagome bit out mordantly as she pushed past her sister and ran up the stairs. Sesshoumaru watched her go but the flare in her Miko powers warned him that trying to go after her was probably a bad idea.

"Damn" Kikyo ran a hand over her face. "I could have handled that better"

The silence was all the agreement she needed and she turned to flop onto the sofa next to Inuyasha.

"What do we do now?" Inuyasha asked the room in general.

There was a collective sigh. They had no idea.

***

Sesshoumaru slid the door to the bathroom open. He knew he probably shouldn't be ding this. In fact, he definitely knew he shouldn't be doing this. But it was hard, his more primal half was screaming at him to comfort the girl, and though he was loathe to admit it he wanted to help her.

Damn that girl and her inescapable ability to endear herself to everyone.

Kagome was oblivious to her company as she allowed her muscles to unwind in the hot water of the spacious bath. She barely registered the sound of clothes hitting the floor until suddenly she had been joined in the water.

She squeaked like a startled Meer cat and tried to escape him. He cocked an eyebrow and held her in place as the bath water attempted to escape the tub.

"Why are you in the bath with me?" she demanded as she finally stopped struggling and relaxed back against his broad chest. The bath tub seemed to shrink with him inside it.

"You were taking too long." He replied "if I am to wash my hair then I need to do it now, else it will not dry in time for sleep."

"You know, as far as excuses go that was pretty crappy."

"Hn" he agreed as he took the soap and began to work the cricks out of her back.

Her head lolled back almost instantly "No touching" she complained half heartedly.

He smirked at the lack of conviction in her words "I assure you I will keep this completely platonic."

She frowned when he said that, did she really want platonic?

"You need to stop being so stressed" he reprimanded as he worked out another knot. "it can cause illness"

"Huh?"

"A person such as you who is hostile, time pressured and competitive is far more likely to end up with some kind of coronary failure."

She gave him a completely bemused look over her shoulder. "Where do you get all this stuff?"

"I read"

"Sometimes I think you read too much." She rolled her eyes.

"I think it is you who reads too little."

She growled at him and he growled back, his was much more impressive and she knew it.

"You're pouting aren't you?" he asked

"No" she said petulantly.

"I believe you" he sniggered.

"Smug bastard" she griped.

"But you still love me."

"No, you love yourself, there's no room for me in that relationship."

At that there was a knock on the door.

"Kagome?" Kikyo called "who are you talking to?"

This seemed to snap Kagome back to her senses and she abruptly realised she was still naked in a bath with a perverted demon. Great.

Squeaking once more she grabbed her towel and fled his clutches.

He watched her go with a small smile; at least she wasn't as horrifyingly depressed.

Plus, he really hadn't minded the view she had gifted him with as she had stepped from the tub.

***

The cafe that had been written down on Yuka's piece of paper was a small cosy affair. The air was saturated with the scent of coffee and there were no chairs, only sofas and beanbags. Kagome entered the cafe tentatively and cast her gaze around to find him. When she laid eyes on him she had to grin.

Gin was the same as always. Sam slightly too long grey hair that fell into his purple eyes, same tight jeans low on his hips, same diamond in his ear and same easily flirtatious attitude. As she laid eyes on him he was flirting with the waitress, in a laid back manner of course. Gin was so laid back he was almost horizontal, unless of course someone ignited his temper. Then he was a demon.

"Kagome!" he smiled when he saw her, his purple eyes lighting up as he observed her closely.

"Hey Gin" she sat down opposite him and offered a nervous smile.

"Don't look at me like that" he admonished "I'm not your headmaster and I'm not about to tell you off."

"I guess."

"How are you?" he asked.

"I'm good" she shrugged "you?"

"Considering everything, I'm getting better" he grinned hugely "I just got a job in a tattoo parlour."

"Seriously?" she smiled "good for you."

"Yeah I start work tomorrow" he sighed softly "I hear from Yura that you got your act together."

"Yeah" she admitted softly, looking down at her lap where her fingers were twisting due to stress. Maybe Sesshoumaru was right about that stress thing; she was beginning to feel nauseous.

"I'm happy for you" he shook his head "you were always too innocent to hang around with someone like me."

"It didn't matter" she shook her head.

"Not to you, but to your mother, sister and the headmaster it did" he smiled "It mattered to me too. I think if you'd hung around with us for much longer your unwavering loyalty would have got you in some of the same trouble we got in. I never would've wished for that."

Kagome smiled sincerely "I know."

"Who was the guy at your apartment?" he asked smirking slightly "Yura said he had great hair, like mine only longer."

"Yeah, that'd be Sesshoumaru" Kagome smiled.

"Ah" he grinned wider "My little girl is all grown up and flirting with boys!"

"Oh, shut it you!" Kagome grumbled.

"On a serious note" he was sombre "do you like him?"

"Um... yeah I guess."

"Does he make you happy?"

"Yeah."

"Does he hate Hojo?"

Kagome giggled "Yeah."

"Then I approve."

"Why thank you." she nodded her head and glanced serrupticiously at her watch.

"That was about as subtle as a bull" Gin noted and she blushed "are you not supposed to be here?"

"Not really."

"Then I shall not keep you" he stood and she mimicked the movement. Pulling her to him he hugged her tightly and she hugged him back. "this is the last time I'll initiate contact, if you want to see me in the future then it's up to you."

She nodded jerkily and whispered "Sayonara, Gin. I'm glad you're changing for the better."

"Sayonara, imouto" he replied softly and watched her leave morosely. It was hard to watch, but Kagome didn't need him anymore and he had to let his little sister grow up and live without him. Sad but true.

***

Kagome was ambushed on her way into the apartment by Sesshoumaru who trapped her against the door and began sniffing her frantically.

"Wha—"

"Why do you smell of tears and an unknown male?" he queried his golden eyes boring into her own, they were darker than usual and flickering between golden and red.

"I—" she attempted but Sesshoumaru's eyes flashed red and his mouth crashed down across hers kissing her frantically, as if he was afraid she would disappear on him and she responded in kind, giving him the reassurance he seemed to crave from her.

A clawed hand slid down her side to cup her buttocks before he moulded her thigh and pulled her leg around his, crushing her form to his. She groaned as his caws found their way under her shirt to tease her stomach with whispering caresses. Her left hand knotted in his silky hair and he groaned as her other hand began to trace the tip of one ear.

Suddenly she was slumped on her own, leaning on the wall, panting as she tried to recover her wits. Sesshoumaru was across the hallway, leaning his forehead on the wall.

"What happened?" he repeated.

"I said goodbye to Gin" she said gazing intently at the potted plant.

"I see" he nodded and bent down to rest his forehead against hers, her eyes widened in shock. "Do you love him as a woman loves a man?"

"He's my brother" she murmured.

"Good" he breathed before brushing his lips over hers in a teasing caress, tender unlike his desperation moments ago. He pulled away and smirked as she touched her lips with her hand. "I'm glad"

***

Gin stepped out of the coffee shop and waved goodbye to the owner, who saluted the young man.

Grinning he stepped out onto the street and watched as a beautiful woman stepped out into the street and pulled her phone from the purse on her shoulder. She was so busy checking her messages she missed the car that was about to hit her.

"Watch out!" Gin yelled throwing himself at her and pulling them back onto the pavement.

"Huh?" she blinked as she looked down at the human male wrapped around her body, his violet eyes stared back at her; amused.

"I just saved your life and all you can say is huh?" he asked cockily

She narrowed her red eyes at him "I didn't need a human to save me."

"Well excuse me." he picked himself up off the floor. "Next time I won't save your life."

She tossed her hair and looked at him carefully "You are a strange human."

"I prefer Gin"

She smirked "And it's Kagura."

A/N: I don't own Inuyasha. I like Gin, he's smexy, but he's also important! All will be revealed if you keep reading and review!


	17. Beware Grandmother's Bearing Gifts

Chapter 17: Beware Grandmothers bearing gifts.

Sesshoumaru had been edgy all day. He would snap at the slightest thing, couldn't sit still and his eyes were constantly flicking about as if he was searching for something.

Eventually Inuyasha snapped "Why are you so damn jumpy?" he asked, in true Inuyasha style.

"It is around the time for Grandmother's annual visit." he growled out "I am waiting for disaster".

"Shit." Inuyasha's ears flattened to his skull and he quickly glanced around as if expecting her to appear from behind a sofa.

Megumi, popping up from who knows where, gasped "Your grandmother?"

"Yes" Sesshoumaru raised an eyebrow. Megumi knew his grandmother?

"Oh dear," Megumi sounded relieved "Pity I won't be here to meet her, I'm going to Madrid."

"Madrid?" Kikyo was dubious.

"Business" Megumi wafted a hand around as if to rid herself of a troublesome fly and then she grabbed her always-ready travel case from behind the sofa. "Ja ne!"

"That was weird" Kagome commented "did she say anything about that to anyone?"

"No" Kikyo shook her head "It's as if she's trying to avoid something."

"Probably his grandmother" Inuyasha chucked a thumb in the direction of Sesshoumaru "anyone who's met that mad old bat tends to run a mile when she's mentioned."

Sesshoumaru hit Inuyasha with his newspaper "You would do well to remember that whilst she is eccentric she is still my grandmother, so close your mouth."

"You don't like the old hag either!" Inuyasha protested. He suddenly found himself face first on the floor courtesy of a clutch bag to the back of his head.

"You should learn to respect your elders, Hanyou" the owner of the bag proclaimed, tossing her shoulder length silver hair over one Armani clad shoulder with regal indifference. She stood almost as tall as Inuyasha at around 6ft and held herself in the manner of an esteemed lady of court. Her eyes were light, dusky pink in colour and filled with a certain self-possession and aloofness that elevated her beyond Sesshoumaru. She was pointedly slim with sharp elbows and a sharp chin. Her ears were Elvin and a pale blue crescent moon graced her brow.

"Grandmother" Sesshoumaru's greeting made the twins do a double take. She looked to be barely twenty; someone needed to bottle demon youthfulness and sell it as a cosmetic to humans.

"Sesshoumaru" she inclined her head.

"How did you get inside?" Kikyo queried, raising an eyebrow.

The demoness examined Kikyo haughtily "Human you insult me. A lock is nary enough to bar my presence"

"Grandmother, it is considered rude to do such a thing" Sesshoumaru warned.

She quirked a brow "Do you believe I care for the petty social norms of humans? If they did not wish for my entrance, they would invest in better security"

"I can see why people don't like her" Kagome murmured to Rin who nodded her head enthusiastically.

The demoness turned her attention on Kagome "Human, are you idiotic enough to think that this one cannot hear you?" she demanded.

"Well I was thinking, with your old age and all that you might need a hearing aid." Kagome shrugged in a blasé fashion.

"Human!" she spat "you will respect your betters."

"Respect is earned not freely given" Kagome tossed her head "I refuse to give respect like some village idiot." Sesshoumaru smacked a hand to his forehead in exasperation. This couldn't end well.

His grandmother gave Kagome a sharp, shrewd look and then ran her gaze over her approvingly.

"You have backbone." the Yokai admitted.

"Why thank you." Kagome rolled her eyes.

"Your name?" she asked.

"Kagome."

"I am Hide." she announced.

"Doesn't that mean excellent or superior?" Kikyo remarked in an aside to Inuyasha.

"Fits her like a glove" Inuyasha snorted.

She shot Inuyasha a contemptuous look and turned back to Kagome "I like you." she announced. "I'm staying, Sesshoumaru prepare me a room!"

"You like her?" Sesshoumaru had not imagined that could happen.

She grinned impishly "It is not everyday this one meets a child that can hold their own against me."

And so, that was how they procured an unexpected -and in some cases unwanted- guest.

Hide was a Yokai of court, used to throwing banquets and having dozens of servants to wait on her every wish. She had borne only one child, a girl Egao, Sesshoumaru's mother and spent most of her time having luncheons with other wealthy demon-dowagers such as she. Kikyo had wondered why she hadn't taken Inuyasha and Sesshoumaru in, Sesshoumaru had answered that the woman hated Inuyasha with a vengeance; he was proof that her darling daughter had been shunned for a human.

She continued to be dismissive toward Kikyo, cold towards Inuyasha and pointedly cordial towards Sesshoumaru. It seemed the only people she could truly stand were Kagome and Rin. She took to Rin, as all people inevitably did, like a duck to water and with a certain fondness began to teach her the logistics of traditional Japanese tea ceremonies.

She also took great delight in taking Kagome out shopping and dressing her in beautiful kimonos of every different colour, all of the finest silk. Kagome had drawn the line at allowing herself to be primped, but Hide seemed to realise that Kagome was weak when it came to fashion and played it to her advantage.

Sesshoumaru was therefore surprised when Hide called him into the living room, on his own no less to talk with her. She was, as always, sat in a regal, ladylike posture on the comfortable sofa.

"Grandmother" he acknowledged as he took a seat opposite her on the sofa. "What is it you wish to talk to me about?"

She smiled a crocodile's smile and drummed her painted claws against the table top rhythmically. She was well aware of just how enamoured her grandson was with the younger Miko; it was blatantly obvious to all with substantial scent receptors. She was well and truly, if unknowingly, saturated with her grandson's youki and scent. The only way he could possibly have made the claim any more obvious would be if he tattooed it across the girl's forehead.

However, the small fact that the girl was unaware of his affection coupled with his standoffishness alerted her to the fact that something was amiss. And she was ninety percent sure it was her grandson's stubborn, aloof and stoic behaviour. It was time for that to change.

After all, she had never been averse to giving blossoming couples a slight _push_ in the right direction.

Picking up her tea, she regarded Sesshoumaru across the brim as he narrowed his eyes at her.

"It is nothing to fret over" she admonished lightly "I merely wish for you to accompany Kagome tomorrow, I will be there too of course, but I thought it would be beneficial for you to accompany us. We will be going to the manor of an old friend, he is performing a rather traditional tea ceremony, and because he is showing off his own grandsons, I thought it prudent to bring you"

"And you are dragging Kagome along because?" he asked softly.

"My friend, he believes that his grandson knows Kagome... I think his name was Naraku?"

Sesshoumaru tensed visibly and glowered at his grandmother "I will be in attendance."

Hook, line and sinker.

Sesshoumaru was uncomfortable. Not because his grandmother had insisted he wear traditional white hakama with a red and white Sakura patterned haori; he was rather comfortable in such. Sesshoumaru was uneasy because they were in a strange, if traditional house, with as yet two unidentified Yokai and one Hanyou that they were both related to. He was already on bad terms with Naraku, he could only imagine what the persons related to him would be like.

But his bigger problem by far was how exquisite Kagome was in a kimono. His grandmother, no doubt intentionally, had selected a beautiful dusky pink kimono. The colours on the kimono were spectacular, the colour regressing from dusky pink at the hem to a pale ivory at the neck.

It was tied with a simple silver obi and she had twisted her hair into a messy bun and secured it with priceless garnet chopsticks. He had no doubt that she had no idea exactly how much money she was wearing. The loosely curled hair was distracting as it was beautiful; the strands brushing the nape of her neck were oddly enticing.

It was strange to him that in an outfit that shrouded her completely from view he was still imagining her naked, with no prompting.

They were led by a butler into a traditional tatami mat laden room with a simple kotasu. The man sat at the table amiably performing the tea ceremony was completely unexpected.

This man was possibly Naraku's polar opposite. His hair was short and tousled, like he spent a lot of his time running his hands through it, and it was bright fire-rat red. He looked to be in his mid thirties but was probably just as ancient as Hide. His eyes, when they flickered over the newcomers, were a light orange colour of sun rises past. He wore a simple black silk hakama and haori and he smile he gave them was genuine.

"Hide!" he bowed politely and she mimicked the gesture "it has been far too long my dear one, and this time you grace me with the presence of your grandson" his eyes raked approvingly over Sesshoumaru "he is quite aloof, I see you are clearly related" and then his cinnamon eyes fell to Kagome "and this must be the lovely Higurashi Kagome. It is a pleasure Madame"

Hide laughed "Please, Chitose, let us get a word in edge ways. It is good to see you too." she smiled as she settled herself on the cushion. "Where are your grandsons?"

"No doubt Naraku-chan is off sulking somewhere" he shrugged "And Hiromasa is always late."

"I resent that." a mockingly happy voice interjected as a man opened the door to the room. Knowing this was not Naraku Kagome presumed it to be the afore mentioned grandson, Hiromasa. He was simply divine.

As well built as Sesshoumaru and one inch taller his presence was more relaxing than stifling as Sesshoumaru's icy one could be. He had black hair like his half brother, yet his was tied into a top knot far more securely than Kagome's. If loose it looked like it would reach his buttocks. His eyes, on the other hand were the same marmalade colour.

"I resent having a lazy bum as my grandson" Chitose shrugged "but what can I do?"

Hiromasa rolled his eyes and took a seat in between Sesshoumaru and Kagome. That was awkward, they had been sitting close together and not intending for anyone to take that spot. They soon discovered why he had forced the space as he turned to Kagome with a dazzling smile.

"I'm Hiromasa."

"Kagome." she supplied softly wondering if perhaps he was dense.

"Such a beautiful name, only fitting for it to belong to such a beautiful woman."

"Um... thanks?" it sounded like a question and she frowned as Sesshoumaru started to growl. Hiromasa also heard the low growling noise emanating from Sesshoumaru and turned to see what was going on. Then with a look of realisation he glanced from Sesshoumaru to Kagome and donned his favourite lecherous smirk.

Across the table Hide's own smirk took up residency. Exactly as she had planned.

Hiromasa was, Sesshoumaru discovered to his dismay, a ladies' man. It was possible that he could charm his way out of any situation and in the ten minutes they waited for Naraku to arrive he had made Kagome laugh at least seven times and she had blushed on at least four separate occasions. Jealousy, he decided, was an ugly form of anger.

When Naraku entered the room Sesshoumaru was instantly tense. The half-arachnid was fuming with a potent maliciousness that radiated forcefully off his aura. It seemed that, unlike Kagura, Naraku was not willing to forgive and forget.

He took a seat opposite his brother and glowered at both Sesshoumaru and Kagome before glaring once again at his plate.

"What's eating you?" Hiromasa asked, it seemed his charm was reserved for the opposite sex only.

Naraku merely grimaced and continued to glare at the plate.

"Ah!" Chitose cried happily "it can't be that you two are the ones who exposed his lying, can it?"

Kagome blushed and looked uncertainly at Sesshoumaru who nodded briskly.

"Well done" Hiromasa sounded genuinely happy and Chitose applauded.

"Thank you for teaching my son a valuable lesson on morals, I keep telling him that the world gives back what you give to it. It was only a matter of time before those ghastly rumours were exposed!"

Naraku flicked a sharp glare in the direction of his grandfather and Kagome flinched; she hadn't known it was possible to look at a family member like that.

Tea was a... strange affair. What with Sesshoumaru glaring at Naraku and Hiromasa for entirely different reasons. Hiromasa trying to charm Kagome out of her kimono and getting a few subtle (though Sesshoumaru noticed and growled his displeasure) gropes in. Naraku sat their plotting. Kagome was sure her face was going to melt if she blushed anymore; Hiromasa's innuendos were getting less and less subtle. And the two old Yokai watching the entire debacle of a tea ceremony with amused expressions.

Putting down his cup Chitose smiled around at those that were assembled and winked conspiratorially at Hide who merely raised an eyebrow in askance.

"Well, I think, seeing as it is a fine day, we should perhaps take a walk in the gardens, maybe enjoy a light game" he suggested

They all acquiesced, some more reluctantly than others.

As they relocated into the beautiful garden with its lush green plants and out of season Sakura trees Chitose spoke again.

"Ah, so beautiful, perhaps we should teach the young ones of the games we used to play when we were younger!"

"Which game?" Hide asked "there were so many." she gave a nostalgic smile.

"What about the game you created?" he suggested.

"Are we not a little old for games?" Sesshoumaru queried.

Hiromasa rolled his eyes "You only live once Moon Man."

Sesshoumaru was considering cursing Kagome for introducing Hiromasa to his less than dignified nickname.

"I think we should play hide and seek my dear" he chuckled "but we shall play it the way we devised it."

"How so?" Hiromasa asked.

"Where one person hides and the others look for them" Chitose explained

"Who will be the one to hide?" Hide inquired grinning impishly; Chitose's game was playing right into her plotting.

"Kagome of course!" he crowed.

"Why 'of course'?" Kagome yelped.

Hiromasa was the one who answered "Because, Kagome-chan, the prey has to be cute!"

Kagome balked a little and looked to Sesshoumaru for assistance, he was no help, busy as he was glaring at both brothers.

"Run Kagome-chan!" Hiromasa teased as he flared his powerful aura.

At that Kagome's instincts kicked in, as much as she was a modern Miko no longer trained to kill all demons on sight she was really just a bundle of instincts. And so, when he flared his aura her own aura was released from its confines and the young Miko turned and fled from the assembled demons, cloaking her scent as she ran.

"Hm" Chitose murmured "She is powerful, interesting."

"She certainly is powerful" Hide tossed her hair "I can't believe you thought I'd socialise with someone who was not!"

"She's not powerful" Hiromasa corrected "she's perfect."

And he was off... in hot pursuit of the Miko. Growling Sesshoumaru began to hunt down the arachnid that was threatening what was his.

Unseen by all, Naraku dissolved silently into the shadows.

***

Okay. So she was completely lost. She knew she shouldn't have ran, shouldn't have participated in this ridiculous game. But it was too late now.

Shivering, Kagome sat under the boughs of a haphazard tree. She knew she was probably getting her kimono dirty, but her feet hurt and she was tired from running.

She tensed as a malignant aura rolled over her and looked up in time to see Naraku glide over the grass to loom over her.

"Um... hi?" she asked cautiously.

"You ruined me" his voice was flat and unforgiving.

She groaned, she had known he wouldn't be as forgiving as Kagura.

"No, I saved my sister from losing her contract" she corrected.

"So I was merely collateral?" he mused darkly.

"You did that to her!" Kagome jumped to her feet, her temper ignited "It's something called Karma dumbass, what goes around comes around?"

He growled darkly "She dumped me!" he yelled "just because some dumb Hanyou showed up?"

"Stop referring to Inuyasha as if he's nothing more than one of a species, he's Inuyasha! And what gives you the right to do talk to him in that way!"

"He took her from me" his tone was desolate.

"He didn't mean to" Kagome's voice was softer "neither did she."

"You are so sure" his laugh was bitter "everything I ever want is snatched away. However it's normally my brother that steals my girlfriends, I was unaccustomed to someone else taking something."

"Your brother?"

"You don't know?" he looked astonished "he is a womaniser, famous for dating a different girl every minute. Women love him."

"Charm should not be all it takes to snag a woman" Kagome shook her head "You should look at it differently; at least you weren't stuck with a shallow girlfriend, right?"

He raised an incredulous eyebrow "Are you an optimist by any chance?"

She grinned "Most of the time, it annoys people."

"I can see that" he looked down at her, even stood she was a lot shorter than him "I was going to get revenge you know."

"You _were_ going to?" she prompted.

"I was going to expose you as Sesshoumaru's love interest, and fabricate images of you with another man, after all you aren't the only one that can glamour yourself, and then let his fans deal with you" he explained.

She shuddered at the thought "And now?"

"Now?" he frowned at her and took her hand and shook it "you're okay Higurashi."

She laughed "You too Onigumo."

"Aha!" Hide crowed making the two teenagers jump out of their skins "Looks like Naraku won!"

Chitose joined her and smiled "I take it that you two have burnt your bridges?"

"Something like that" Naraku rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.

"Where are Sesshoumaru and Hiromasa?" Kagome was curious.

"Ah," Hide giggled girlishly "they got into a little bit of a fight, they're in the dojo"

"A fight?" Kagome asked at the same time as Naraku said "They're going to kill each other!"

"They'll be fine" Chitose was optimistic

"Sure" Naraku said in a tone that suggested he highly doubted it.

They all tensed at the unmistakeable sound of steel hitting steel. A roar came from the room and suddenly two decidedly topless demons burst through the wall into the garden, katanas aloft.

Okay. So Kagome wasn't normally the type to swoon, but something about a shirtless, sweaty sword wielding Sesshoumaru made all the blood rush to her head. She swayed slightly.

Perspiration slowly rolled across his collar bone, along one bicep and across the rippling surface of his abdomen into the material of his workout pants.

Hm. She wondered if it was possible to melt. Her head titled to one side as she watched his long hair stick to his torso. Damn.

Her slight arousal seemed to be all it took for the fight to break up. Suddenly she was being caged in the densely muscled arms of a feral Sesshoumaru whilst he growled at Hiromasa.

Hiromasa grinned slightly "I'm sorry Moon Man, I didn't realise how attached to the girl you really were"

Sesshoumaru growled again, pressing Kagome into the hard muscles of his chest.

"I'll back off" Hiromasa held his hands out in a peaceful gesture "no harm done, ne?"

Sesshoumaru merely growled again. Kagome patted his arm like he was a puppy.

"Come on Lord Grumpy-Buttocks, let's go home!"

Unsurprisingly Kagome was bitten on her ear for being insolent. So she pinched his arm, he bit her other ear and it devolved into a fight. Hide, rolling her eyes, rounded them up and carted them off back home.

***

Sesshoumaru was following his nose. The hunter was on the prowl and he would not rest until he found his intended victim. No matter how well she seemed to have hidden herself.

Eventually he found himself on the roof with the harsh wind whipping his long hair about his face and the harsh sun beating down on his head and shoulders.

Kagome was sprawled out on her stomach across the roof, her hair dancing above her in the wind. She was wearing her favourite blue leggings and she had pilfered Sesshoumaru's dark blue shirt, which she wore over her white vest top. Her Ipod was tucked into her ears and it was obvious she was oblivious to his approach.

He smirked; he liked a naïve victim.

Prowling until he was stood over her, he made sure his shadow did not forewarn her of his presence and, quick as a cobra's strike, his hand snapped out and grabbed her ankle.

She shrieked and looked at him in bemused shock.

Smirking, he slowly lifted her by her ankle until she was dangling, upside down, in front of his face. Her eyes level with his waist.

"Huh?" she asked "Why am I upside down Sesshoumaru?"

"Do you not see my little Miko?"

"Um... no."

"Earlier today Hiromasa lost."

"Technically he gave up." She pointed out. He shook her up and down a few times; she shut up.

"Which means, Kagome," she shivered at the emphasis he put on her name and tried to ignore the sensation of blood rushing to her head. "I win and therefore I claim you as my prize."

"Huh?"

The world spun on its axis for Kagome as Sesshoumaru abruptly righted her onto her feet and proceeded to kiss her stupid with such ferocity that her legs effectively turned into jelly.

If this was what happened when he fought another guy over her, he could do it more often.

"Mmm Sesshoumaru!" she gasped as her back arched under his teasing caresses to her neck.

Yes, she definitely liked it when he won.

A/N: I don't own Inuyasha. A huge hug goes to whoever nominated Strike a Pose for best AU best Romance and best Sesshoumaru portrayal in the Dokuga awards. Please review!


	18. It's Valentines Day!

Chapter Eighteen: It's Valentine's Day!

Inuyasha and Sesshoumaru paused to stare at the twins in confusion.

They were supposed to be going to school... but they were both sat, legs intertwined, on the sofa in their pyjamas watching early morning TV. They still had bed-head.

The entire downstairs of the apartment was decked from head to toe with hundreds of roses and other flowers and chocolates were spread across all the surfaces.

"What are you doing?" Sesshoumaru asked curiously.

"We don't go to school on Valentine's Day." Kikyo replied with an adamant conviction.

Inuyasha blinked "It's Valentine's Day?"

He was ignored.

"You two probably shouldn't go into school either." Kikyo advised sagely "You'll get mobbed, fan girls call off all rules when it comes to Valentine's Day."

"Huh?"

"Don't tell me you've never experienced the joys of a fan club on this most prestigious day?" Kagome mocked from her seat "It's always a buzz when they try to kill each other!"

"You are being preposterous" Sesshoumaru decided.

Kagome giggled "I never get stalked, but my famous twin here has to beat guys away with a baseball bat!"

Kikyo snorted and rolled her eyes "Melodramatic much?"

"Have you seen the amount of flowers in this room?" Kagome demanded incredulously.

They all looked round then and the flowers leered back in a sinister manner.

"You are ridiculous" Sesshoumaru proclaimed.

Kagome snorted "Go then, see if I care when you get mugged by screaming fan girls!"

"Kagome! Kikyo!" Megumi appeared at the bottom of the stairs, shoving her things into her bag. "You are going to school today!"

"We are?" Kikyo sounded surprised "but you said we could have the day off!"

"That was before I realised Kagome has a French test" Megumi glowered at Kagome who smiled sheepishly back.

***

"I still hate Valentine's Day." Kagome grumbled as Sesshoumaru pulled into the parking-space outside the school.

"Why?" Inuyasha asked

"It's a pointless holiday!" she exclaimed "designed by card and chocolate companies to turn a profit!"

"You are bitter because no one has ever given you chocolate." Sesshoumaru surmised.

She started to hit him with her French book and he easily evaded her sporadic blows. Carefully backing her up until she was pressed against the passenger door, he unbuckled her seatbelt and opened the door in one fell swoop.

She toppled out of the car and onto the asphalt and glared up at Sesshoumaru to find him smirking down at her.

"Smirk all you want, I guarantee this is the best you'll feel all day" she predicted in a vindictive tone.

She was right.

The entire day he and Inuyasha were stalked by hordes of obsessed girls brandishing chocolates and shrieking their declarations of love at the two Inu brothers. They were used to attention, but this was ridiculous.

"Sesshoumaru-senpai I like you"

"I love you Sesshoumaru-senpai"

"Will you please take this as a token of my love Sesshoumaru-senpai?"

By lunch Sesshoumaru was willing to rip out all his hair and enter into the witness relocation programme for a modicum of privacy and peace.

Kagome was sat alone in the cafeteria and he could tell by the smug look on her face that she was enjoying his pain immensely.

He sat down heavily opposite her and sighed gustily.

"Where's Inuyasha?"

"I do not care; I only just managed to escape with my virtue intact."

She giggled "Your virtue?" she looked him up and down "I would have thought you were already sullied my Lord"

"Sullied Miko? I am perfection in flesh" he smirked.

They blinked as several squeals broke out because of his smirking.

"Oh dear" Kagome sympathised as Sesshoumaru winced as their squealing hurt his sensitive ears.

"Kagome-senpai?" a new, timid male voice enquired and they both glanced to the left to see a boy in the year below Kagome stood by their table, a box of chocolates in hand.

Kagome's eyes widened in pure horror mixed with a shock.

The poor boy was quivering where he stood, not just from his embarrassment at what he had just done but also because of the scrutiny Sesshoumaru was currently putting him under.

Was it possible for a demon to reduce a human to a puddle of acidic goo with his eyes? The poor boy had a strange feeling that he was about to find out.

"Ano... thanks but I don't believe in Valentine's Day." She smiled softly at the boy and he smiled uncertainly back as he glanced between her and Sesshoumaru.

"Are you two dating?" he asked tentatively.

Sesshoumaru's eyes sparkled with mischief as he grabbed hold of Kagome's hand across the table and glared at the human.

"Yes, we are."

Silence consumed the cafeteria as Kagome turned the colour of a cherry. It seemed that they had all been listening to the conversation and this latest revelation had come as somewhat of a shock.

"Help me!" Inuyasha's shrieking cut into the terse silence as he burst into the cafeteria followed by a horde of squealing girls.

"What happened to him?" Kagome asked softly

"I think they caught him." Sesshoumaru murmured as he pulled her to her feet and leant down to whisper in her ear "and now I have caught you."

The next thing Kagome knew they were sprawled in the back of the car along the backseat, him laying slightly atop her holding himself off her by his elbows.

She scowled at him. "A car? Seriously Sesshoumaru? I thought you had more class."

"This Sesshoumaru has class" he sneered "this is a Lamborghini"

At her outraged cry he sealed her lips with his, effectively ruining any chance of her protesting the matter any further. A deep sense of masculine pride took over as she melted into the leather seat beneath her and he pulled away for one moment.

"Happy Valentine's Day" he murmured against her collar bone.

Hands fisting in his hair she dragged him so his eyes were level with hers again "Yeah, but I don't care about Valentine's, so just shut up!"

With that, she dragged a bemused Sesshoumaru back down to her lips.

Valentine's indeed.

Meanwhile Inuyasha had locked himself in one of the janitor's closets, refusing to come out until either Kikyo or Sesshoumaru came to get him.

He had decided; he didn't like Valentine's Day.

A/N: I don't own Inuyasha. Happy Valentine's day guys! Thanks for reading and please review!


	19. Road Trip

Chapter Nineteen: Road Trip

"It's over," Inuyasha crowed for the seventh time that day.

Valentine's Day had been over for a while now but he still hadn't shut up – they were beginning to think that those girls that had captured him had made significant psychological damage.

They were astutely ignoring the ridiculous Hanyou, but it was hard when he was being so loud that it was liable to make their ears bleed. It was quite honestly getting annoying, so no one was surprised when Sesshoumaru turned, punched him in the stomach and then sat back down again.

This effectively winded Inuyasha and a comfortable silence resumed. That was, until he recovered his capability of speech.

"Where are we going anyway?" he grouched folding his arms across his chest as he slumped against the backseat of the car. Kagome was the designated driver, with Sesshoumaru claiming the front seat because he refused to share the backseat with Inuyasha.

"We've told you" Kagome sighed "we're going to see our cousin! It's his first gig and it's really important to him!"

"Do you even know if he is proficient?" Sesshoumaru asked

Kagome wrinkled her nose "I guess, he's the lead singer and he's always been pretty good."

"What do you mean 'this is a big deal'?" Inuyasha demanded "You said it was just some open air concert with a dozen other bands playing!"

Kikyo sighed "Bankotsu is out cousin Inuyasha, we're offering him moral support because we love him, stop complaining!"

"He's just a cousin!" Inuyasha scoffed "why's he so special?"

"He taught me to swim" Kagome offered.

"He introduced me to the cello."

"He taught me to draw," Kagome commented.

"And he taught me to take a good photograph" Kikyo reminisced.

Kagome grinned "He taught me how to develop one."

Inuyasha scowled "So?"

"Are you jealous, dear brother?" Sesshoumaru mocked softly.

"Shut up asshole!" Inuyasha snarled.

Sesshoumaru's smirk widened considerably and he winced as Kagome slapped his arm sharply "Don't taunt our Hanyou, he can't deal with it, you know that."

Inuyasha sputtered and Sesshoumaru rolled his eyes.

There were a few blessed minutes of silence before Inuyasha piped up again.

"Are we there yet?"

This time it was Kikyo who punched him.

Kagome grinned "We won't be there until tomorrow; we have to stop off at a hotel along the way"

"What?" Inuyasha demanded.

"Don't worry, its fine, like a road trip I guess." Kagome shrugged in a blasé fashion.

"Where are we staying?" Sesshoumaru enquired.

"Okasan booked us into this little hotel in the mountains; it used to be an onsen before the springs dried up." Kagome nodded to the glove compartment. "There's a brochure inside."

Dutifully Sesshoumaru popped the glove compartment open and perused the faded brochure that looked like it was at least twenty years old. It proclaimed amazing service, en suite bathrooms and a mini-bar in every room but the outdated photographs were not exactly reassuring.

"Hn."

"Don't be so pessimistic!" Kagome, so used to Sesshoumaru and his 'hning', correctly interpreted it.

When they pulled up outside the inn at sundown Kagome took back her words.

"Okay, so maybe pessimism is apt," she muttered.

The others climbed from the car to surround her and frowned up at the poor dilapidated place. The inn was bedraggled and leaning crookedly against the mountain for support, there were no other cars parked and there was no noise of any guests or staff.

"I think that when the hot spring dried up so did their patronage," Kikyo whispered.

"Yeah" Kagome nodded "do you think there's anyone here?"

Sesshoumaru sighed "If no one was here, how did Megumi-san make reservations?"

"Oh yeah" Kagome shrugged and grabbed her bag "Let's check in then."

They traipsed into the check in area, too small a place to really actually hold all four of them and Kagome hit the bell on the weathered desk. The bell didn't make a ding, it broke into its components and Kagome looked down at it helplessly.

"You broke their bell" Inuyasha accused.

"I'm aware of that!" she snapped. "Now what?" She looked to Sesshoumaru and Kikyo.

"We were expecting you," a soft voice called and they jumped as a small hunchbacked woman appeared from a back room. She had long greying hair and her eyes protruded ridiculously far from her skull like she had been startled by something. It gave her the quality of a beady eyed toad and Sesshoumaru instinctively pulled Kagome away from the desk slightly.

She blinked up at him and he lowered his head to whisper in her ear "Witch."

"I am Urasue," she nodded "I will show you your room."

She tottered out from behind the desk and walked off in the direction a spindly staircase that groaned worryingly as she stepped onto the first step. Hesitantly, they followed her until she led them to a small room on the first floor with four single pallets in a square formation. The bedclothes were clean at least but the room was seemingly in a state of disrepair.

"Please forgive this old Urasue for the mess, my son said he would come and help me tidy for our guests, but he did not come home," she smiled, though the effect was more creepy than reassuring and left them in the room.

"I vote we sleep in the car," Inuyasha proposed as soon as the door closed behind her.

"You're paranoid," Sesshoumaru deduced.

"Okay." Kagome geared herself up to be optimistic but failed, wincing as she looked at the gloomy room.

Kikyo frowned and pulled a small chest from her bag before setting it upon the table in the middle of the room.

"Mah-Jong," she announced, "we'll play Mah-Jong."

Three hours later saw the mini-bar emptied courtesy of Inuyasha, Kikyo reading through sheet music and Kagome and Sesshoumaru still locked in an epic battle of Mah-Jong.

It was common knowledge that Sesshoumaru had a competitive streak a mile long and, combined with Kagome's unfailing stubbornness to persist in anything she tried, they could be at it for a while.

Inuyasha groaned as he polished off the last of the contents of the mini-bar. "Don't we get any food?"

"We had food, she brought us rice an hour ago, remember?" Kagome reminded, eyes fixed on her tiles.

"And you've eaten the entire contents of the mini-bar," Sesshoumaru noted, "all that chocolate should have made you sick."

"Do Inu Yokai get sick from chocolate like normal dogs?" Kagome asked interestedly.

"If we are foolish enough to consume our entire body weight in chocolate?" he asked, discarding a tile into the centre. "Yes."

"I'm still hungry" Inuyasha grumbled.

"Do you have hollow legs?" Kagome asked flippantly.

"Fine" Inuyasha huffed, getting to his feet sluggishly due to the copious amounts of food he had ingested. "I'll go and look myself!"

With that he wobbled to the door.

"I wouldn't do that," Sesshoumaru cautioned.

Inuyasha's response was to flip his big brother the bird and continue out of the door.

"Why wouldn't you do that?"

"He might eat something he's not supposed to" Sesshoumaru shrugged "he has a knack for getting himself in trouble, when he was five he got stuck up a tree in my grandmother's orchard for seven hours"

Kagome snorted and Kikyo smiled indulgently.

"I'll bet he was a cute kid" Kikyo offered softly

Sesshoumaru quirked a brow "Indeed, until he opened his mouth of course"

They laughed as one this time, halting in their frivolity only when they heard Inuyasha shriek from in the kitchen.

"What now?" Sesshoumaru asked disparagingly as they all clambered to their feet and rushed down the stairs to the aid of their Hanyou friend.

The sight that greeted them was unexpected to say the least.

Inuyasha was sprawled on the floor of the tiny kitchen, crumbs coating his chops looking up at a livid Urasue with baleful eyes as she pelted him with eggs.

"Bad dog!" she hollered before launching two more projectiles.

"Did we just step out of our own reality and fall into another one?" Kagome asked bemusedly

"What happened?" Kikyo asked, loudly enough to gather Urasue's attention.

"He ate my gingerbread house!" she screeched.

The three exchanged a horrified glance.

"Well don't I feel like Gretel?" Kagome asked rhetorically, "Do you suppose she'll try and put him in the oven" Kagome glanced at the tiny stove ponderingly, "because he'll never fit."

Urasue calmed down slightly "I was making a mini gingerbread house for my grandchildren, they're visiting tomorrow" she confessed "but he ate it!" she pointed an accusing finger at the cowering Inuyasha.

"Inuyasha!" Kikyo snapped "Apologise!"

"She's the one throwing eggs!" he yelped.

"Inuyasha" Kikyo's voice got quieter when she was annoyed and, at this point, she was barely audible.

"I'm sorry!" he blurted, unwilling to face Kikyo's wrath.

"I should curse him!" Urasue declared hotly folding her arms huffily.

"No need" Kagome interjected cheerfully "with the amount of chocolate he's eaten he'll be puking his guts up all night!"

As if this was its cue, Inuyasha's gut made its presence known and he scampered away quickly to find a bathroom.

"Instant karma!" Kagome chirped.

***

Bedtime was an amusing affair, with Inuyasha decidedly absent, Kikyo listening to her iPod, oblivious to the rest of the world and Kagome and Sesshoumaru sharing a pallet as they continued their game of mah-jong.

Kagome claimed another victory to add to their tally that Sesshoumaru had drawn up after Kagome's insistence that she was beating him. He was ahead but she was gaining momentum; he was only one game in the lead.

"Hn."

The tiles were restacked and a new game began and the intensity of their concentration only rivalled by the bizarre quality to their fixation.

The rhythmic clinking of tiles being tossed into the centre permeated the air but no other noise was made, their determination was slightly overdramatic but they didn't appear to care.

Kagome glowered at Sesshoumaru, she needed one more tile to win and she knew he probably had it. He merely quirked a brow and threw down another useless tile.

She scowled as she tossed out a useless tile and balked when he snatched it up triumphantly. He'd won!

She threw a tile at him, her eyes growing to the size of dinner plates when it actually caught him squarely in the forehead, right in the crescent moon.

His eyebrow twitched spasmodically. "You are a sore loser, Miko," he intoned.

She collapsed sideways onto the pallet, wrapping her arms around her middle and rocking backwards and forwards with apparently hysterical laughter.

He waited for her to calm down for a few moments before boredom possessed him and he rolled her off the pallet with a foot.

She glowered up at him. "Did you just kick me off my pallet?" she asked.

"It is mine," he sighed and pointed at the one next to Kikyo, "that is yours."

She frowned distrustfully at him and trotted over to the thing before picking the pillow room it and diving onto Sesshoumaru, fully intending to beat the living arrogance out of him but he brought up his own weapon(another cushion) and soon they were engaged in mortal combat.

The impromptu battle ended soon after it began because Kagome couldn't breathe; physical exertion coupled with almost hysterical laughter had brought her down pretty easily and, as they lay there regaining their breath, Sesshoumaru listened to Kagome's heart rate calm and her breathing become rhythmic. Sitting up slightly on his elbows he looked down at her and quirked a brow.

She was asleep.

Worse, she was asleep across his chest, her fingers tangled in his hair and her legs entwined in his own. There was no escape from her presence for him, at least not on that night.

He pressed his face into her hair and inhaled deeply, saturating his lungs with her intoxicating scent. He couldn't say he minded not being able to escape her.

***

The next morning they departed, Kagome saluting Urasue from the front seat whilst Sesshoumaru drove. Kikyo was in the backseat as temporary nursemaid for Inuyasha. It was her responsibility to make sure he didn't ruin the upholstery.

"I'll never eat chocolate again!" Inuyasha swore vehemently.

"Hn," Sesshoumaru intoned.

Kagome was happy to translate. "That meant if he had ten yen every time you said that, he'd be rich by now."

"Shut up!" Inuyasha groaned.

A/N: I don't own Inuyasha. This is a two partner with the next half being the actual meeting with the band! Thanks for reading and review!


	20. Road Trip Again

Chapter 20: Road Trip Again

Eventually Inuyasha fell asleep in the back seat of the car, much to everyone's relief; they had been sure he was going to throw-up in the car.

Sesshoumaru pulled up outside a tiny little flat and wrinkled his nose in distaste. Kagome elbowed him in the ribs.

"No snobbery!" she scolded as they exited the car.

Inuyasha grumbled as they tried to prise him from the car, it seemed impossible to wake him so they settled to let Sesshoumaru carry him as they traipsed up the stairs to the flat Bankotsu currently resided in.

The door was flung open before they actually reached it and Kagome and Kikyo were pulled into a bone crushing hug by a plaited boy who bore a striking resemblance to them. They returned the hug with equal fervour.

"K'gome, Kik!" the boy enthused.

"Hey, Bank!" Kagome squealed as they jumped around in a circle, Kikyo taken along for a ride.

"If you don't mind, do you have a closet I could put the Hanyou in?" Sesshoumaru asked mordantly.

Bankotsu blinked up at the male hefting a Hanyou and laughed. "Sure, will a couch do instead?"

"If I must." Sesshoumaru sounded disappointed.

"You really wanted to put him in a closet, huh?" Kagome was amused.

Sesshoumaru shrugged and dumped Inuyasha onto the couch so hard he bounced and thumped onto the floor.

"Ow" Kagome winced for the fallen Hanyou "show some compassion!"

"I did, I could have dropped him down the stairs," Sesshoumaru deadpanned.

***

The beat pulsed through the earth with an intensity which gave the ground a heartbeat. The sun was setting lazily in the sky and the audience was screaming and dancing with careless abandon.

Sesshoumaru was thankful for the ear-defenders that Kagome had given him, the music was too loud and he was too close to the stage to block it out. Inuyasha was having a harder time about it, considering he'd refused the earplugs.

"Bankotsu's band is up next," Kagome yelled excitedly.

If Sesshoumaru had to name one benefit of the deranged noise levels it was how close Kagome had to be in order to converse with him. He enjoyed that perhaps more than he cared to admit.

Plus, her delightful scent infiltrated his senses and blocked out the smell of too many unwashed teenage bodies.

He growled as a gangly teenager shunted her and caught her up glaring at the offending male until he scuttled away.

Kagome grinned her thanks and remained clinging to his arm. He watched her strain so she could see and smirked at the devious plan that sprung to mind.

Ducking down, he grabbed her thighs and parted them, slipping his head in between them and lowering her onto his shoulders. He stood and a bewildered Kagome was hefted onto his broad shoulders.

"Wah!" she exclaimed happily as she gripped onto his shoulders to retain her balance.

She tilted her head back and held out her arms daringly before poking her tongue out at Inuyasha who rolled his eyes.

"Where's Kikyo, anyway?" Inuyasha asked bemusedly.

"Wow, you really missed a lot whilst you were unconscious huh?" Kagome mused "Bankotsu's bassist dropped out at the last minute so Kikyo is filling in."

"Kikyo can play bass?" Inuyasha asked curiously.

"Bankotsu taught her." Kagome shrugged. "She's pretty good too."

They watched as the act trooped offstage and gave way to the band they had been waiting for with rapt anticipation.

Bankotsu's voice was the first thing audible. On its own without accompaniment it was throaty and smooth, rich in texture and saturated the clearing in a soothing thrum.

"He's good," Inuyasha murmured.

The music melded seamlessly with his voice and began to build with intensity until the entire audience was completely captivated at the beautiful show. It was less than any other band, almost as if they had opted out of the clichéd teenage music and decided to delve into the beauty of this piece.

Kikyo played her bass like it was a lover, soothing caresses whilst she locked eyes with each member of her audience in turn. Kagome noted that she held Inuyasha's gaze much longer than anyone else's and chuckled.

Bankotsu crooned to the row of hormonal girls in the front girl, effectively reducing them to puddles of mush.

"There he goes again," Kagome murmured softly, "he's always been a charmer."

"I'm glad he's related to Kikyo," Inuyasha muttered grouchily.

Kagome giggled. "You think that'll stop him? We're only cousins after all."

Inuyasha's eyes narrowed and Kagome laughed so hard she nearly fell off of Sesshoumaru's shoulders. Only his hands clamping down around her thighs saved her from tumbling.

"I'm pulling your leg Inuyasha, it's fine!" she promised.

"Yeah," he said but he didn't stop his sulky vigil.

"Baka," Kagome chastened fondly.

Kagome's eyes wandered over the audience, pausing when she caught a glance of familiar silver hair; Gin!

She watched with a small smile on his face as he danced with none other than Kagura. Interesting. Well the strangest relationships were generally a good thing, right? She fervently hoped Gin had gotten over his womanizing ways.

***

They tumbled back into the small flat at a ridiculously late time and crashed into their respective beds sleepily. It was an unmentionable time in the morning and they all just wanted to sleep, except of course, Sesshoumaru who was going to fulfil a slightly wicked plan he had dreamed up earlier.

The next morning they were all woken by an unusual alarm; Inuyasha. He was squawking at them from the closet. Sesshoumaru wore a smirk like the cat that had the cream and, upon opening the door they discovered he's trussed Inuyasha up like a stuck pig and put an apple in his mouth.

When asked he had merely said: "It is revenge, for cutting my hair when I was twelve."

They all vowed never to piss Sesshoumaru off; he could hold a grudge.

A/N: I don't own Inuyasha. I hope you enjoyed this chapter!


	21. Did You Forget, Inuyasha?

Did You Forget, Inuyasha?

Kagome and Rin peered at the spectacle that called itself Inuyasha as he ate them out of house and home from his reclined position on the sofa in their living room.

"That's his third bag of popcorn," Rin confided in a whisper.

"Pig," Kagome grumbled, "he'll just throw up, it's fine."

"He's gonna be sick?" Rin asked softly watching as he emptied the dregs of the bag into his black hole-like mouth.

"Probably, and it's no one's fault but his own," Kagome schooled her cousin seriously as she pulled her maths book from her bag with a flourish. "He can pig-out and make himself sick, but some of us need to study." She paused for a moment to consider the front cover of her maths book mournfully. "Is Sesshoumaru home yet?"

"Yeah!" Rin chirped "he said he came home without you 'cause Inuyasha was being a moron."

"Yeah," Kagome grinned conspiratorially, "he does that a lot. But now that he's home I can bully him into helping me with maths!"

Now, never let it be said that Inuyasha didn't notice things that were, in actual fact, right under his nose. He was, after all, Inu and therefore had a highly developed, keen sense of smell that meant he could hunt down his precious ramen no matter where it was hiding from him. No, the problem was not his nose, the problem seemed to be with his memory.

It had been marked in the calendar for weeks.

School had issued them with warnings upon warnings.

But he'd forgotten. Or maybe he'd repressed the terrifying notion of what was to come.

But certain facts revealed themselves to him with blinding obviousness.

Sesshoumaru was sat at the table next to Kagome, whose maths books were sprawled out across the table; calmly and matter-of-factly teaching her the delights of surds and integers. Kikyo sat across the table from them, a veritable monolith of a French dictionary open in front of her as she cursed in French under her breath, her pen working overtime across the paper.

"What are you guys doing?" he asked, scooping a spoonful of cereal into his mouth.

They all looked at him, their expressions ranging from disbelief to resigned disdain.

"Um, Inuyasha, the tests are next week," Kikyo reminded him softly, "We're studying."

Golden eyes grew wide and his jaw grew slack, the small amount of cereal and milk he'd had in his mouth dribbled out of the side of his mouth.

Kagome cautiously pulled herself out of the chair and walked up to him. Pacing around the stunned, unresponsive, Hanyou like a hawk stalking its prey she came to a stop in front of his face and waved a hand in front of his eyes.

"Is he dead?" she asked.

"No, just stupid," Sesshoumaru muttered caustically, his pencil tapping the table impatiently.

"Inuyasha?" Kagome asked, "Inuyasha! Ramen!"

No response.

"Inuyasha, Sesshoumaru melted your TV."

Nothing.

"Inuyasha, you're on fire!"

No response... yet again.

"Inuyasha! Kikyo's naked!"

"Kagome!" Kikyo blushed several shades of red.

"What?" Inuyasha asked dreamily, seemingly to waking from his stupor.

Kagome grinned in a Cheshire cat manner at Sesshoumaru who crooked a brow. "Seems the way to a pervert's heart is through the object of his affections," Kagome mused.

Kikyo faux-punched her twin lightly on her arm.

"What?" Inuyasha snapped irately.

"Nothing," Kagome hummed innocently, picking up her maths book and closing it with a snap, "so, now that you realise you're doomed, what're you going to do?" she asked rapping him on the head with her textbook.

The look of abject horror said it all.

Kagome stretched her arms out above her head sinuously as she exited the exam room with Inuyasha. She thought the test had gone well but she'd always been good at English as opposed to maths, her hated subject.

Inuyasha followed behind the contented Kagome, wavering with every step like some kind of trauma victim that had gone into shock.

Sesshoumaru had met them outside the classroom. "I take it from the expression on the whelp's face that he didn't fare well?"

Kagome spared a glance over her shoulder at the comatose puppy and giggled.

"I don't know, but I do remember that, at one point he smacked his head down onto the table and gave up."

"Fool," Sesshoumaru smacked Inuyasha hard and the Hanyou stumbled out of his coma in time to try and beat his brother up.

Kagome watched wryly as Inuyasha tried to beat the crap out of Sesshoumaru, only succeeding in getting the crap beat out of him instead.

"Don't break the school you two!"

The results were in. Inuyasha had been pried from the house that morning, both Sesshoumaru and Kagome employing drastic actions to get him out of the house. But now, as they trundled down the linoleum, their shoes squeaking against it, Inuyasha resembled a prisoner being led to face his firing squad.

Kagome had captured one of his arms and was forcibly dragging him along the corridor; a determined expression flitting across her features.

Sesshoumaru, having already seen that he had placed first in his year, which he had taken within his smug stride, escorted them also. Wanting to see the Hanyou's failure with his own eyes.

The scores had been taped up to the walls in the corridors, a visible proclamation of either success or failure to whomever wished to glance upon them.

Kagome gasped when she saw her name "Twentieth!" she exulted happily, Sesshoumaru, who had been reading over her shoulder, quirked a brow.

"Well, who knew you were smart," he asked wryly.

She glowered at him. "You trying to say I'm stupid?"

"Never," he promised, ruffling her hair in a patronising manner.

"Inuyasha?" Kagome inquired, noticing the way the Hanyou lingered at the other end of the board.

"He came hundredth," Sesshoumaru scoffed, his enhanced eyesight enabling him to see over the length of the corridor.

"Ouch," Kagome muttered, "did he accidentally get dropped on his head when he was a kid?"

"No," Sesshoumaru's face twisted into a deviant grin, "It was never on accident that I dropped him."

Kagome blinked up at the male next to her. "You cruel, cruel brother." She mused, all the while hoping he'd been joking. It was kind of hard to tell with Sesshoumaru.

"It was not cruelty," Sesshoumaru scoffed, "I was trying to ascertain his endurance levels."

Kagome prodded him in the temple and when he turned annoyed golden eyes to meet hers, said "You're really weird, you know that?"

"Hn, I am not the one who watches cartoons upside down on the sofa, how old are you by the way?"

Just down the corridor from the quarrelling couple, something sunk into the Hanyou's brains and the school children around him jumped away in fright as he dropped to his knees and screamed.

"I didn't beat Kouga?"

"At least he's got his priorities straight," Kagome deadpanned.

A/N: I do not own Inuyasha. Thanks for reading and review please!


	22. In the Rafters

Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha.

* * *

Kagome stumbled down the stairs early that Saturday morning; her hair tussled from sleep and her eyes half shut, all because she could hear something moving.

It was a shuffling disorienting noise that made Kagome kind of edgy and had roused her from her comfortable bed to investigate what on earth was making such a noise.

Her feet scuffed against the wooden floor in her Hello Kitty slippers as she entered the hallway and pushed her hair from her eyes blearily.

There was a large parcel in the middle of the hallway, she realised belatedly, with a note attached.

Kagome perused the note leisurely, frowning at the box when she'd finished. It was something that Sesshoumaru's father's lawyer had been holding onto until now?

Cautiously approaching the box, she nearly fell over backwards when it shuffled towards her. Was there something alive in there?

Retreating to behind the counter in the kitchen, she grabbed a mop and brandished it at the moving box warningly, before issuing it with a sharp poke when it didn't stop shuffling towards her like it was possessed.

"Miko, what are you doing?"

She whirled at the sound of Sesshoumaru's voice and accidentally slapped him in the face with her mop turned weapon.

Golden eyes glowered at her as she lowered the mop sheepishly and shrugged. "At least it wasn't wet."

The expression on his face hinted that he wasn't in the least amused.

"What is the matter with you?" he asked, regaining his composure somewhat as he calmly proceeded to detangle the birds nest that was her hair with long deft fingers. She submitted grumpily to being fussed over, whilst keeping suspicious eyes on the box.

"It's the box," she muttered, "before you got here it was moving."

He snorted, warm breath ghosting across her neck. "Maybe I scared it into being stationary."

Rolling her eyes she tried to dig him in the ribs with her elbow, but being the nimble Yokai that he was, he dodged effortlessly.

The box rumbled again and Kagome squeaked at the unexpected movement, causing Sesshoumaru to pet her head and stalk forward curiously towards the box.

"Don't!" she barked out, "this is the part in all those horror movies where the people at home yell 'don't open the box' and you just know some scary creature-type thing is going to jump out of the box and smother you!"

Sesshoumaru was marginally impressed; she'd managed to say all of that in one breath. "Kagome," he reassured, "we aren't in a horror movie."

"But you don't know that Moon Man!"

"Kagome, I think I'd know if I was an underpaid actor in a second rate horror movie."

"Nu-uh!"

"Hn, you make little sense when you get into this state," he acknowledged, slowly touching a hand to the box.

The weird vibrations stopped instantly and Kagome let out a huff of distrust.

"Now it's trying to lull you into a false sense of security," she warned picking up the mop once more.

"Ridiculous," he muttered, his claws tearing the top of the box off easily.

Golden eyes grew wide as he stared into the box and Kagome's curiosity grew until it was palpable and she was at his size, peering into the box with him.

She blinked a few times at the sight of a... furry snake?

Because it certainly looked like one.

"What is it?"

"Mokomoko-sama," he muttered, a slightly awed expression on his face.

"What's a mokomoko-sama?"

"It is a pelt that every Taiyokai receives when their power is mature," he informed her, "I must have matured so I get one."

"Why was the box moving?" she asked, "Isn't it just a pelt?"

As if affronted by being referred to as 'just a pelt' it rose up out of the box like a snake being charmed and wound its way around Sesshoumaru's arm, slithering around his neck and then his chest.

"It's alive!" Kagome crowed, like a bad extra from a horror movie as she backed away from Sesshoumaru. The pelt seemed to be getting familiar with its new master... a little too familiar.

"Is it groping you?" Kagome asked wide eyed as the pelt worked its way down him chest and slithered between his thighs in a suggestive manner.

Sesshoumaru huffed impatiently as he allowed the pelt to do what it wanted. He knew, from what his father had imparted onto him, that the pelt was familiarizing itself with him as its new master. He just had to put up with it, not that he didn't want to rip the intruding thing from his body and punt it across the apartment...

Suddenly, it calmed and moved to drape itself over one shoulder.

"What, it's had its fun?" Kagome asked tentatively, reaching out as if to swat at it, but drawing her hand back apprehensively.

"Apparently it likes me," he deadpanned, petting the white furry thing absentmindedly.

"It's creepy." No one could accuse her of mincing her words.

"It is a sign of achievement," he corrected imperiously.

"Nope, I'd say it's just creepy," she disagreed.

"Hn." Golden eyes narrowed speculatively as he watched her clench and unclench her hands at her sides. "You want to pet it," he guessed shrewdly.

She firmly placed her hands behind her back and shook her head vehemently. "No I don't," she insisted, chin tilting stubbornly.

"Lying only works if the person you are lying to can't read you like a book," he countered cannily, stepping forward and petting his pelt enticingly.

"You are a meany," she pouted, eyes shifty as she gazed at the pelt.

"Meany? Is that even a word?" he mocked.

She poked her tongue out at him and, giving in to fluffy temptation, she reached out a hand and entwined her fingers into the silky fur.

Sesshoumaru quirked a brow as she stepped closer to him and rubbed her cheek against his pelt.

"Can I have one?" she mumbled into the fur.

"I thought it was creepy," he countered.

She elbowed him in the kidneys. "Only at first," she corrected.

As if it could understand the conversation, mokomoko-sama unwound from Sesshoumaru's shoulders and moulded itself around Kagome in a giant fluffy hug.

Startled, Kagome stepped away from Sesshoumaru and the pelt wrapped itself around her more firmly, cutting off her movement as it bound her knees together.

"I think it likes me," Kagome admitted as Sesshoumaru growled at the pelt.

"What on earth are you two doing?" Kikyo demanded, appearing at the top of the stairs with a rumpled Inuyasha in tow.

"Mokomoko-sama likes me!" Kagome cheered.

* * *

But, as most giant furry pelts get attached to people for life, Kagome soon became slightly irritated with the giant ball of fluff.

It clung to her incessantly, refusing to let her move, butting people that came too close, it really seemed to detest Inuyasha and spent a lot of time tripping him up and throwing things at him, it made it impossible for her to shower, or to design for her next photo shoot.

Yes, mokomoko-sama was beginning to wear out its welcome.

Sesshoumaru was not coping; in fact he had retreated to his room and refused to talk, not that being reticent wasn't the norm for Sesshoumaru.

But he was... sulking.

"He's jealous!" Kikyo declared, causing Kagome and mokomoko-sama to jump in their seat.

"Huh?" Kagome queried, freeing an arm with much effort to grab her book from the coffee table.

"Sesshoumaru-san doesn't like the fact that mokomoko-sama is all over you all the time, so much so that he can't even be near you without it trying to knock him out," Kikyo suggested, stabbing her sheet music with her fountain pen for emphasis.

Kagome growled as the constricting mokomoko-sama caused her to drop her book and began wriggling all over the sofa like she was trying to rid herself of a fluffy straight jacket, which she was, albeit a _clingy_ fluffy straightjacket.

"Stop it!" Kagome exclaimed as the fluffy critter manoeuvred itself inside her t-shirt.

Kagome glanced up from her fluffy tormentor in time to see Sesshoumaru shoot it a glare of malice before he stormed from the apartment.

"Moon Man!" Kagome caterwauled mournfully, "come back and get the stupid thing off of me!"

* * *

Glowering the asphalt into submission, Sesshoumaru growled under his breath as he ran through his options. Getting rid of the furry demon would be good, but getting it away from Kagome would not be an easy option.

The stupid parasite was bound so tightly to the little Miko that he resembled a boa constrictor. It irked Sesshoumaru that mokomoko, that was for all intents and purposes, supposed to be an intrinsic part of him, could touch Kagome and he could not.

Glad he'd had the foresight to grab his phone, he flipped it open and called his grandmother, if anyone knew how to deal with a demonic fur-ball, it was his cantankerous grandmother.

"Grandmother?" he asked when the phone was answered.

"Master Sesshoumaru?" a timid sounding voice – definitely not his grandmother – that he vaguely recalled as belonging to a member of his grandmother's staff.

"Where is my grandmother?" he demanded.

"Right now?" the servant's voice trembled, "she's chasing the Kitsune door-to-door salesman across the garden. She said something about 'the best exercise she's had in centuries'."

A silver brow quirked and Sesshoumaru shrugged; his grandmother had always hated loathed and detested foxes. This was relatively normal.

"Tell her I am in need of her counsel," he ordered, unsurprised when the servants timid holler resulted in Hide's abrupt return.

"You need my help, grandson?" she asked in her haughty way, her tone self-satisfied, she did enjoy making him humbly ask for her advice.

"I have my mokomoko-sama," Sesshoumaru cut to the chase, too weary to deal with his eccentric grandmother.

"Then congratulations are in order," she mused, "but that isn't why you called."

"I called because the _thing_ has become somewhat attached to Kagome."

"Somewhat attached," Hide allowed herself a vindictive chuckle, "let me guess, it's holding on and won't let go?"

"Precisely," he muttered resignedly, a little chagrined that she'd guessed so quickly, had she somehow seen this coming?

"I thought as much, it is all your fault you know!" she scolded, causing Sesshoumaru to roll his eyes – there was no one there to see it after all.

"Don't you roll your eyes at me!" she sniffed haughtily, "now, the reason mokomoko is doing that is because Kagome is coated in your youki and your scent, he is protecting her."

"From me? Because it will not let me near her either," he muttered. If this was some defensive trait it was probably not that bad. But why would it protect the person with his youki and scent on them from _him_?

"_Let you_? Let you! It is a hyped up feather boa! Make it submit! You _are_ still a whelp," she sighed dramatically, "good luck and good bye."

Now Sesshoumaru knew why he didn't call his grandmother very often. It left him wanting to melt something.

But, the hag's advice was probably not as sour as she. Yes, it was time to teach mokomoko-sama a lesson.

* * *

Kagome jumped when the apartment door burst open and Inuyasha, who had been sitting nearby, retreated to a safe distance upon seeing his half-brother's intent expression. Such a look generally meant a lot of pain was imminent for Inuyasha.

But this time, mokomoko-sama was the object of Sesshoumaru's derision.

Sensing trouble, mokomoko-sama lifted it's 'head' and shivered at the inhospitable youki that was pouring off of Sesshoumaru in waves.

Kagome screeched as the head shot towards the ceiling and wrapped around a support beam.

"What's it doing?" she demanded uneasily, seconds before it began winching her towards the ceiling. In no time at all she was ensconced in a furry nest in the corner of the room.

"Shit," Inuyasha commented, earning himself a growl from Sesshoumaru .

"You guys!" Kagome yelped, "I could do with a little help here!"

Sesshoumaru glowered at mokomoko. "The retreat to higher grounds was a good idea," he uttered, stepping forward until he was directly underneath Kagome, "but you underestimate me."

There was a subtle flaring in his youki and Kagome and Inuyasha watched in interest as a cloud of youki formed beneath Sesshoumaru's feet and he levitated from the floor.

"You can fly!" Kagome and Inuyasha exclaimed as one.

Kagome crooked a brow at Inuyasha. "You didn't know? Isn't he supposed to be your brother?"

"Half-brother," Inuyasha corrected.

Ignoring their little conversation, Sesshoumaru wrenched mokomoko away and caught Kagome in a rather intricate movement that was too fast for Kagome to catch. Mokomoko was thrown to the ground with a rather painful sounding crack and Sesshoumaru descended elegantly, Kagome thrown over one shoulder in a casual fireman's lift.

Wriggling profusely from her position over Sesshoumaru's shoulder, Kagome was not expecting him to swat her sharply on the bottom. "Desist," he ordered callously.

For an easy life, Kagome went along with it and found herself suddenly back on her feet, but still being held close to Sesshoumaru's chest.

Bending his head to Kagome's neck, he grazed the column of her throat with his fangs and in a deep timbre that vibrated through the room, proclaimed. "Mine."

The pelt shifted, wriggled for a moment and then drooped, as if the life had been sucked out of it.

"What did you do to it?" Inuyasha demanded, prodding at mokomoko absently with an outstretched toe that poked through a hole in his sock.

"It has submitted to me," Sesshoumaru's pride leaked through his tone as he removed his teeth from Kagome's neck. The Miko rubbed her neck absently, flicking an annoyed glance at her demon friend.

"Can we get rid of it now?" Kagome asked, shooting her previous kidnapper a reproachful glare.

"Leave it to me!" Rin sang happily as she skipped down the stairs.

A bemused trio watched as Rin scooped up mokomoko, dropped him into a cabinet and, with a flourish that would have done a magician proud, slapped a sutra on the top.

"No more mokomoko!" she cheered.

"Who taught you that?" Kagome asked, tone bewildered as she looked at her cousin.

"Kikyo."

"That explains it then."

* * *

A/N: Hope you enjoyed it! Totals up to 2,373 words.


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